I think, like most things in life, it’s mix of underlying causes. I don’t have the answers, just anecdotes.

For one: The drone thing was kind of a fad for a while. Hobbies are like that.

I know that drones have more uses than just hobby-wise, but most people I know who got drones weren’t doing it for professional reasons, they just wanted a drone because it was cool and neat and new (to them). Anyway, the thing with fads and hobbies is that there will be some small group of people for whom this is or becomes a life long passion, but for most people and most hobbies, they just sort of do what’s en vogue at the time, then move on to the next fad when the time comes. Nothing wrong with that, just pointing it out.

Two: Related to my first comment, for most people this is just a fad, so they aren’t going to go spend premium amounts of money to get good quality equipment. The market was (and probably still is) flooded with super cheap low quality stuff that leaves a bad impression and kills the vibe as people think “drones kind of suck” or recognize that it’s a pay to play (well) hobby like so many others.

Essentially, the neatness wears off and people move on to the next big thing.