This reminds me a bit of the trading card “collectible” market in the later stages. Sports cards initially became collectible due to scarcity but as cards became a popular collectible and more cards were produced and people took better care because of the potential value cratered so they started producing manufactured scarcity by first making rare card series of limited quantities but eventually over time those cards barely held value either. Now they are at a point where they are offering cards with pieces game worn jerseys, etc
It’s trading cards are not something that people trade anymore and are now almost exclusively collectible items. vinyl releases like this are designed with much of the same idea behind it. It’s can be played but it’s more designed to look nice on shelf.
That is fine for the most part as long as they are still making records that are meant to be enjoyed which for now still seems to be the case.
Also, maximizing the prices for this type of release takes a big night out of secondary market resale value. I am sure some people will try to flip these but at this price point the flipping margins become a lot slimmer and likely less appealing. More money in VMP pockets.