Yup.
However, the correlation people make with MSRP being related to quality is unassailable. Even if people agree that higher price doesn't always mean better performance there is no doubt that their ingrained belief system still clings to this axiom. It may be unconscious and/or purely emotional but it's the truth for a huge majority of people regardless of intelligence or how adamantly they may claim otherwise.
And as far as sales via dealers, they are all used to cables being the "gravy train". It's like car dealers and their add-on accessories. Those $150 wheel locks cost $25 at the local auto parts store.
My cables cost about 1/3rd to 1/5th vs other companies who sell cables using wire and plugs from the
exact same companies I do, yet it's very difficult to convince people to even give them a try with a 30 day free demo. Even with excellent reviews and many, many claims that they are even better vs my "competition"... even after 6 years of being in business without a bad word being said anywhere, and AFAIK every single one of my customers being happy. Maybe it's the lack of fancy packaging, glossy color brochures and 6-figure ad placements in stereophile?
IME, people lament the "unfair" markups but then they buy those same products anyways, even given an alternative with fair markups.
Given this very interesting phenomenon, I wouldn't expect to see a change anytime soon! It make me want to shift to a dealer-sale model to be honest, or at least start another brand that sells via distributors and dealers.