That might be a reason, but it is certainly not the reason.
This is a slow game on an outdated website. It's practically the "chess by mail" of today. You'd have to really L O V E love chess to be playing that shit by mail in 2025 lol.
Ie. This is a niche game. And the gaming market is 100x bigger than it was 17 years ago.
With a great app we get to 40k again. Maybe more.
We all had to grind to get established. In this game, it's a right of passage. Embrace your journey.