I can believe that, I love Tamiya but over here in the UK it's so far out of it - at least from my perspective. They seem to advertise in the mags - but that's about it. All the time companies like HPI are becoming more 'Tamiya' than Tamiya - getting their products into mainstream shops and on the TV. Tamiya just sit back and stick an advert in the back of a magazine for a car they don't even support (501X, for instance).
Forgive my rant! lol