Is the A&R role redundant?

News: 31st January 2011 by Louise Dodgson under Music Publishing, Record Labels

Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joemad/2599937406/

Could A&R be on its last legs? Once upon a time an A&R person would play a huge part in spotting and developing the potential in an artist, but fast forward to the present day and many record labels do not want to take risks and prefer to be presented with a mostly finished product. However, many independent labels still place great emphasis on the A&R process, and rightly so...