I agree. It seems that it is by design in some way. The shift is really dramatic.

Perhaps it is just "we're not eating enough of the wall-mart (call it what you want) market". And now they're going after that at the expense of the larger brand.

They're big enough now that they'll grow / maybe miss what they're doking up until it is too late.

I'm already shopping elsewhere more often / actively searching out alternatives to Amazon.