You could be right on some fronts, however I watched a very good interview with one hybrid maker who explains how he started, and why his product is expensive. It's a long one, but very informative. In another interview, the same maker has said that he intends for the designs of his new releases to be completely open sourced, so that they CAN be knocked off.
Audio sort of sux, but you can still hear the conversation.
A PBusardo Video - Rochester Vape Meet & ZEN - YouTube
