oldskoolrx7, old goose, let someone new enlighten you.
"Why would the devs GIVE you something when they can get the same thing from you by "encouraging" you to PAY for it?"
They don't get the same thing from me. From me personally, they get
less than if they gave me a little.
"The first few weeks (as with all these games) are a fast rush, then it slows down to a grind."
I'm okay with being slowed down later when everybody else is, but not now when the race takes place somewhere else.
"Doing as you say would negate the grind and the potential for earnings, thus won't happen."
InnoGames, and only they, would know better from where their income comes. As of now, some new players might pay €10 for the free builder before they realize that this game doesn't really want them to play (and then they'll give up on the game). But if the game would actually encourage new players to play, then those new players might also pay later on. The only reason not to make it easier with research is if a good part of the new players that spend €10 then spend 200,000 diamonds for KP. I doubt this is the case.
"Don't get me wrong, I think a 200% boost tapering down over say 2 months is a great idea, just not going to happen. Can you imagine the outcry from the cash cows that are (and have) spending/(spent) money and you get it for free??"
The outcry you imagine would only be justified if the previous "cash cows" have spent a lot of diamonds on buying KPs. But since they have always been near the top, most likely they didn't spend those diamonds on KPs. Some of them might even welcome competition. And of course a game with more players is doing better.
Something else to think about, oldskoolrx7. Try starting the game with a new account, you might understand better the utter hopelessness of new players.
It's not like you would lose very much.
(I've see you're ranked #3078)