The prior state of affairs and the new state of affairs don't really strike me as being as different as this article suggests. There have probably always been a

The prior state of affairs and the new state of affairs don't really strike me as being as different as this article suggests. There have probably always been a much higher number of people making amateur film than the number you'd see coming out in an art house theatre or limited chain theatre run. The difference is that the gate is crumbling and the price floor is being removed. A lot more people now stand to make very little doing something they love, where before they stood to make absolutely nothing. Some of the sales of the top-tier indie market will undoubtedly go down, but demand for great work from outside the studio system will never disappear entirely. But they need to compete on an even playing field with the newer generation and not try to hide behind the old system until it falls down completely. If the developing products are reaching everyone and the quality products continue to reach only the privileged few (seriously, try watching an indie movie in a small town), the people who cling to the limited distribution model will stand to lose the most.