The Record Industry's Decline

"They left billions and billions of dollars on the table by suing Napster -- that was the moment that the labels killed themselves," says Jeff Kwatinetz, CEO of management company the Firm: Part 1 of Rolling Stone's piece on the steady decline of the record biz...at least as we know it. I, for one, knowing how much great music is being made out there, feel confident labels will always exist for consumers in some aspect or another - whether digital-only or some type of hybrid. But in the meantime, this means personnel layoffs, budget constraints, co. mergers, and retail chain closures as the majors struggle to catch up.