Back in 1997 BI (Before Internet) we didn't know exactly what was coming out. There wasn't endless interminable rumour leaking etc.
Is the element of surprise not a nice thing? I don't believe anyone in this hobby is obsessive enough to budget ahead based purely on the new release schedule. There is always that bright idea for a new conversion, or that cheap deal on ebay. Or maybe people should just be disciplined and once their budget is spent - thats it. So put some aside for new releases.
Anyway if you let it all be known 6 months in advance then your competitors, blood sucking leaches like CHS, can get ahead of the drag curve and force the pace of release creating models you may not have wanted to release until 2nd wave.
Too many people having their cake and eating it has led us to this point.