Yes, he is a hacker.

You guys are interpreting this as "cracker" which is a criminal computer manipulator. However a 'hacker' is a person who manipulates a system, program or device to perform actions not normally within its specifications.

In this case, modifying the Fire to run a different OS.

Calling someone a hacker simply indicates that they have a different perspective on how to use devices, and that they have a different though process when looking at a new device.

Amazon has no interest in upgrading the Kindle Fire to ICS. The sole purpose for the Kindle Fire is to sell Amazon content. Nothing more. This is why they are willing to take a loss on it. So naturally, the news that some developer is trying to turn it into a full fledged tablet, will not sit well. Look for a patch to prevent this from happening at best or a lawsuit to prevent the developer from continuing this work, at worst.

Most users will appreciate the work these guys do, but Amazon will surely not be pleased. They sell these things at a loss so that the buyer is locked into their content.

Echoing the other comment here - developers who port android to other devices are not hackers. They are developers.

And I highly doubt that you will be seeing an ICS build from Amazon on the Kindle Fire anytime soon. From what I understand, their build is extremely customized and I doubt their first priority this closely after release is to update the OS.

Try developer.

I thought kindle was running android 2.1?