Several reputable smaller labels are issuing their product on CD-Rs. There's a price advantage (over pressed CDs) for short runs; this disappears as run length increases. The major advantage for the smal producer (including indies) is that you don't have to lay out the cash for a thousand-CD run when you don't expect to sell that many in the near future.

While I've hears of failed CD-Rs, I've personally never encountered any. CD-Rs that I (CAMSCO) sell have a lifetime warranty.