Audio in Epub Ebooks

I'm hoping someone can help me.
I have a problem that is unique to the ebook I  am currently working on: it has mp3 files embedded into many of the  chapters. Everything works great when I convert my Indesign file to pdf.  Unfortunately, when I convert to epub, and because of the severe  limitations of e-readers (including the Kindle), I have to come up with a new strategy. The mp3 files, 63 minutes in total, are crucial to the story (nonfiction espionage).
The options I believe open to me at this point are:
1)  have a companion folder of all audio that I can zip with the epub file.  The reader can then download both and save the audio files in his  e-reader's audio section. Then I can have links from the epub file to a  specific  mp3  file in the audio folder.
2) have URL links in the ebook  where the reader can go and listen to a particular mp3. This might be  preferable since the reader can't tamper with my mp3 files
Problem  is, I can't figure out how to do either 1) or 2). Can anyone please help  me? Also, if someone has a better idea for getting audio into an epub  ebook, please let me know.
Of course there's a final option, do  an epub ebook without the audio -- but I would really hate to do that  since I feel it will be an inferior product. I strongly believe that ebooks should be moving in the direction of interactivity -- embedded audio or video. That gives an ebook a huge advantage over print editions. I've already done a  pre-release sale (of the pdf version only) and readers have told me that  the mp3s make the ebook come alive.
Thank you in advance,
John Pansini 

I'm just learning ePub myself, but I'll try to help you as much as I can. What you're trying to do is on the cutting edge, and you may have difficulties implementing it.
Regarding the two options you list, I'm pretty sure #1 will not work. I don't think ePub files can reliably link to a folder of files outside of the ePub which would reside somewhere on the reader's file system. I think #2 would be worth exploring. I think you'd need to have a web server where you could post your audio files, and create URLs to each of them. That probably falls the the category of using XHTML and CSS, and you'd either have to learn that yourself by using Dreamweaver or similar application, or by hand-coding (or you'd have to find someone who could set it up for you).
That seems to be changing in the future. Currently the iBook application (iPad and iPhone) supports video files. According to Liz Castro's excellent book "EPUB Straight to the Point," "The iPad only supports video compressed with H.264 and saved in MP4/M4V format." I know you can create video files which are audio only. I've done that with QuickTime, and I'm sure you could convert that to MP4/M4V. But that would not work with other eBook readers. In particular, the Kindle is pretty lame for supporting anything other than text.
I believe I've heard that a newer ePUB standard just announced (the name of which escapes me at the moment) will also support embedded video files.

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