I live in the Boston area (the area being referred-to in the news article) and it wasn't obvious how it applied to folk music.    Folk music is mostly either public-domain traditional music or original singer-songwriter music so I don't see how ASCAP, et al, have any relevant interest.

I go to lots of folk music events and house concerts as an audience member and there still do seem to be lots of them, but I haven't talked to the organizers about this topic.
   
The biggest problem we've had recently in the Boston area WRT folk music is that the local NPR affiliate radio station, WGBH, canceled its local folk-music program in favor of nationally syndicated news and talk-radio programming (which was already being carried by the other local NPR station).   They said they were trying to increase their station membership. I responded by terminating my membership in WGBH.