The Fall of the Record Business: What Next?

Here’s the synopsis of a recent Rolling Stone article.

I especially like Theory #6, which is the elephant in the room that no one really speaks of….

Theory 1: Ad-Supported Music
Theory 2: Peer-to-Peer Goes Legit
Theory 3: Endless Access Points for Music
Theory 4: Labels Change Their Stripes

Theory 5: Consumers Become Retailers

Hypothetical Theory 6: Music industry dies?

"The music industry as we know it ceases to exist due to mass piracy, which
effectively prevents the tracking of listening, as well as the collection of
royalties.  The labels in this world have no reliable way to generate
revenue, while simultaneously their ability to influence listeners is
diminished as users move toward algorithmic recommendation engines.
Instead, musicians abandon centralized labels and establish direct business
relationships with their fans through tickets, merchandise, and donations."
(David Barrett)