^^this^^
OP - How many "collectors" do you think are out there? I have 7 pins... am I part of your demographic, is it everybody on the boards or really only a small subset of all owners? I consider myself an owner/player NOT a collector. I will tell you right now that having a collection and being a collector are two VERY different things. Paying $10k+ for a restored classic or rare NIB just to say you have it is not the same as buying a new or used pin to play. I own based on value not price, my wife loves WOZ but we agree that having that much $$ tied up in a single pin is silly because we can have just as much fun with several lesser cost games instead ... what I consider a better value may not work for everybody but I didn't get to a point of being a few house payments from being debt free by not getting the most value out of my money.

That is the reality of business, the cost must match the perceived value. The perceived value of the innovations has led to a slight increase in the price of the product but apparently people aren't really seeing enough value to drive the prices up. I'm probably in the minority because I don't care about LCD display or even DMD, I look at the play field and ball when I play ... not animations.

PinballStar started a thread about credit being available for JJP pin purchases and he stated in that thread that operators "can't afford" JJP pins at the current price so JJP realized they can't compete on price (innovation has lower perceived value). But no worries about JJP, the availability of credit WILL drive up the prices where you want them because it reduces a barrier to ownership for those who see/need the innovation but lack resources.

You are wrong and this may seem like semantics but there are some really important distinctions you need to consider. IMO true "collecting" suggests a desire to own for the sake of ownership.
I have 12 place settings of daily flatware/plates in my kitchen ... am I collector? No, I have enough to have friends over and not have to wash before each meal. I have 5 wrist watches ... am I collector? No, I have different watches for different situations (formal active waterproof etc). Here is a carguement - I have 4 vehicles for a two person household therefor I must be a car collector?? No, I have different vehicles to serve different purposes (commuting, truck for hauling etc). But given your apparent definition of collecting I guess in all those cases I would be.

Most importantly I don't own pinball machines simply to own (i.e. collect) pinball machines. I have different styles of pinball machines EM and DMD, they play differently and I have them for different reasons ... same situation as my cars. I also own them so I can play them when I want because there are very few places near me I can do so. If I lived in another location and had more options for location play I might not own any OR I might have 2-3 rare, unique, or hard to find pins in which case I would be considered a collector because the reason I own them has changed ... not the value of those pins (plenty of rare but cheap pins). You are right that there are people who want to collect pins but can't afford $9k for a single pin but again WHY do they want to have a collection ... do they want to own them for the sake of having them?
Don't lump me in with people who are willing to pay $12k for a restored MM ... not me, it simply won't happen - no value to me. I can afford to pay that much for something that interests me however I don't care about owning that type of pin. BUT a true collector does exactly that. I won't purchase an LE in order to have an LE ... a collector will. I don't buy pins with the expectation that it holds or increases in value ... a collector probably does (because of the types of pins owned).