Akamai: Is the Answer in the Common Law?

In its recent decision in Limelight Networks Inc. v. Akamai Techs., Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court decided the easy question - whether inducement must be supported by direct infringement - on precedent grounds, yet avoided the much more difficult question of how the courts should deal with multi-actor infringement of a method or process patent. Precedent is indeed clear that direct infringement is a predicate to indirect infringement, and the Court's decision on this question was exactly right. The interesting questions remaining, however, are why did the Federal Circuit attempt to rewrite precedent in this manner and what should the Federal Circuit do with multi-actor infringement doctrine on remand?