"If I had to place my own target on the comics industry, I'd say that the real neophobes in the marketplace are the fans, who bitch up a storm whenever something changes from the way it was twenty years ago, and who punish any attempt at innovation by failing to purchase it."
In my personal experience I'd say that is more the editorial punishing writers and artists for trying new things out of fear of alienating the fans as well as more than a few of them being the ones trying to bring back their childhood.
Sure the fans are not entierly blameless nor are all the editors inheritantly bad but the fans are not the ones with creative control over the industry,