Does the emergence of the digital download signal the end for the music industry?

The ability to distribute digital audio over the Internet was limited till the creation of the mp3, which consequently led to file sharing or a 'culture of piracy'. It was thought that digital copying had the potential to 'completely undermine the business of selling packaged music' and so the RIAA began to issue lawsuits against consumers to show computer owners that file sharing is equivalent to shoplifting. Lessig suggested 4 types of file sharing; the only category which could have an effect on sales was A – ‘to replace purchasing’. However Oberlnolzrr and Strumpt (2004) found file sharing had an effect on sales which was 'indistinguishable from zero' and so cannot be blamed for the decline in sales.  Condry found that students used file sharing as a way of sampling music before they buy, I agree with this as I used this practise myself, so file sharing should be viewed as a means of promotion rather than  signalling the end for the music industry.  Perhaps the blame should then be pointed at the record labels themselves, if they presented their music as something other than a commodity maybe there wouldn’t be such a decline in sales and a ‘culture of piracy’.