He actually really pins the nail on the head with this one
The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs: The music industry nobs have finally figured out what we're doingHere's the thing. These guys could have done what we did. In the early
days of the Internet, everyone figured the majors would build digital
distribution arms. But they didn't do it, because they didn't
understand technology, and they didn't want to invest in building this
expertise, and they were freaked out about piracy and paralyzed with
fear. So we stepped in. We made the big investment. We hired
programmers. We developed software that's easy to use and works
flawlessly. (If you think that's trivial, think again. It's huge.) We
ran the system. We promoted it, we marketed it, we haggled with all the
majors and struck deals. We took all the risk, which was considerable.
Now we're reaping the reward. And the majors want a bigger slice. Um,
for what? We did all the work. Ain't gonna happen, slick.
Gratuitously ripped from the comments 'cause it amused me:
Q: Have you heard the one about the lo-fi indie musician?
A: I have that joke at home on vinyl.