Recently, the NY Times published an article, "How the Music Industry Learned to Love Piracy". The article is a response to the a Paramount documentary "How Music Got Free" praising the early days of music file-sharing and the subsequent effects on the industry:

"...the documentary treats the rise of online file-sharing services as first an astonishment, then a nuisance, then an existential threat and then, amazingly, a panacea. The original pirates are judged to be “pioneers” who lit the only clear path forward for the music industry. That path turns out to be streaming, a neat compromise between letting consumers listen to whatever they want online and collecting just enough money for it that big record labels are satisfied with their cut."

Over the years, there have been countless articles about the history of file sharing that all play out the same way. This one isn't much different.

However, what does stand out about this article is its timing and its assumption that streaming in its present form is permanent.

I don't think that's the case.

In the last year, both Spotify and Apple Music have increased prices for their service. I doubt they'll be the only ones. There is nothing written in stone that says more and more price increase won't lead to the return of piracy.

Will the industry love it then?

I would say what the music industry loves and what realities exist are two different things. The music industry loves to make money. At some point, when file-sharing was clearly more than some fad and there was no other clear fix, the industry accepted reality.

Now I have to admit, I haven't seen the documentary. But I think it's safe to say the last chapters of this whole file sharing/piracy saga have yet to be written.