It’s an obsolete usage of “beg” that’s now preserved only in that particular set phrase. One of English’s many linguistic fossils, which you should learn more about before trying to critique anyone’s language use.

The newsworthy parts of this:

1. It was a monkey and not a squirrel.
2. It took down the entire grid and not just a section of it, because poorly-designed and -maintained grid.

It’s useful because it’s ubiquitous. Everything that can take in music files supports it.

Is MP3-encoded audio of the best possible quality? No, of course not. But for most people it’s Good Enough, especially if you do most of your listening in a noisy environment. MP3s are to lossless formats what CD was to vinyl for so many years.

My bet would be, convenient and intrusive. The two are not mutually exclusive—in fact, they very frequently go together.