It is entirely possible there are other factors as to why we are not buying from them right now, such as supplier-related issues unbeknownst to us.
In short, the economy is more complex than claiming "demand" and saying we are done.
Yes, admittedly this is anecdotal, but I am talking about an extended family/social circle of hundreds of people over the course of quite a few years. The odds of it being a massively unrepresentative sample are rather low.
Let's turn it around. How do you know that people are concerned about data collection?
All available evidence points to my assertion being correct. All sorts of "smart" devices, chock full of phone-home tracking, are flying off the shelves. There are alternatives, but they are quite niche.
The "smart" functionality is how they achieve low prices. They subsidize the cost of the TV by selling your usage data. They may have deals with app providers as well - similar to how the price of a consumer laptop is subsidized by preloaded crapware.
The vast majority of people just don't care and want the most TV for the least money.
It's a "tyranny of the majority" kind of situation. For TV manufacturers, it's not worth catering to the tiny minority of customers who think like us.