Quote - An example would be bb's materials - before he came on the scene realistic materials were few and far between. Now there are a lot more vendors including very similar shaders with their character packs. We could argue that they didn't exist because no-one wanted them, but this isn't the case as many more vendors see the value in including them (I also understand bb's materials packs are quite popular). Prior to bb coming onto the Poser scene most vendors lacked the ability to understand shaders in the way he does, and also the shader technology in the app has developed.

That might be part of it, but I think what's driven this is more technology.  Namely, Poser's SSS capability.  People like that look, and I think they've been trying to achieve it for years.  (I remember being part of a group that made free Poser 5 MAT files for figures that lacked them, that used the then-"advanced" shaders to give skin and eyes that glowing look that P4 materials couldn't do.)  SSS is a quantum leap above that.

Quote - I might argue a similar case for ultra-realistic mesh-shapes - that before now the technology hasn't existed for vendors in this marketplace to be able to consider it viable, and the amount of time required to accurately sculpt such shapes is similarly prohibitive.

What's different about now?  Genesis?  Weight-mapping?  I guess I just don't see the technological leap in mesh shaping that we've gotten in materials.  Things like facial and body proportions...vendors have been adjusting those since Vicky 1 at least (remember Supermodel Vicky?)