That's definitely part of it.
It's not the whole of it... for example, I finally found someone who runs 4E in a way that makes it an enjoyable game for me. So now I know that's even possible. And I like some of the decisions they're making with Essentials, and I like the format, etc.
But I don't like to give my "fun money" to people who appear to hold me in contempt. As with many things in life, sometimes it all just comes down to how nicely you ask.
Yes, good point. And I think this is one of the reasons why D&D isn't morepopular, and why 4E hasn't gotten a larger share of the 3.x pie. TSR had quite a history of bad PR and WotC, at least recently, seems to have inherited it. For many, it seemed, the outright marketing of 4E to young 'uns seemed like a dis to the old 'uns. "What? Dragonborn? Elves without whites in their eyes? Powers for fighters?" Plus there was the art and the general aesthetic, which seemed more geared towards a 14-year old than a 40-year old. Fair enough. But then there were some minor and major PR guffaws, from the GSL debacle, the PDF snafu, the delay and downsizing of D&D Insider, tons of errata evidencing poor editing, some rules quirks evidencing rushed playtesting, relatively mild but hurtful (to some) remarks about 3.5 being suckier, etc.
This is hardly a new phenomena: A company wants to appeal to a new, larger market but forgets their base, who they seemingly took for granted. One major problem was the relative lack of playtesting and the fact that WotC was sharing pretty much nothing about the system. But WotC doesn't seem to know what Paizo, for instance,
does seem to know: That RPGers are a finicky and very sensitive bunch. Combine that with above average intelligence and vivid imaginations and you have a very delicate situation.
Evidently WotC is trying to KO two birds with one bola: lapsed D&D players from 3.5 and before with the kitschy ads, the Elmore Red Box, and the power-free martial characters; and new players with the big store products and easier intro sets. It will be interesting to see where we are a year from now; either 4.Essentials will be booming and in full swing, or there will be downsizing and rumblings about 5E being sooner than later.
What a wacky world this RPG industry is!