I also believe Stupid, you are missing something here. Paying an affiliate 30% commission actually doesn’t cost the casino anything. They don’t pay you unless you bring them a player, so these smaller offshore sites don’t NEED a huge budget, they just need affiliates.
This whole game, the whole Internet, all comes down to affiliates and the more competition the better it is for affiliates.
Your 100% right in a “Free” Open market! Now close that “Open” market with licensing. Now it becomes a closed good ole boy group. And you no longer need affiliates.