I hope this hasn't been addressed before...

Thus far I've only played through as TEC.  I like them so much I haven't switched sides long enough to delve very deep in tthier tech tree.  The Akkon Battlecruiser has a special abilty, Ion Cannon or Ion Burst is what I think it's called.  If not it's something close.  I've noticed that it's effect is so short, even at it's highest level, that it seems virtually ineffective.  I know it would be easy to mess it up by making it last too long, but could you all look at increasing it's duration a bit? 

Black Market....  Could it be made possible to purchase pirate shipson the Black Market?  I'm not sure how difficult this would be, but it sure would be a nice addition.  It would be especially fun during the early game before you've had a chance to invest in those cruiser techs. 

Thanks!