Towards the End of Stereo Audio-In in Computers?

If such info would come on April 1st, we would then think it is a joke, but today is July 09th, and the story originates from the RIAA, an organization not really known for its sense of humor. According to Electronista, The RIAA is pushing PC makers to limit or disable stereo recording support in computers. As usual with the RIAA, the reason is a new attempt to discourage piracy and prevent illegal copy by closing off analog-to-digital recording. According to the several sources, it would be the reason why hardware models from Dell, Gateway and Packard-Bell are only allowed single-channel recording out of the box.
The quoted companies did not release an official explanation for the artificially disabled stereo support or the need to pay additional fee for a fix (99 USD).
If such information would originate from countries were civil rights are known to be compromised or simply do not exist we would not be surprised, but it seems that even in some democracies, freedom of surfing on the web or using your computer the way you want while remaining into the legal scope is being challenged.