I also bought a different, brand-name stand for my rMBP. I'm one of the people who are willing to pay extra for a product because it looks better. I don't think Amazon is threatening higher-price/lower-quantity products that are truly outstanding (much better looking, much better quality). These make more money off of one sale, and have a smaller market. The more complex the product is, the easier it is for a company to set their version apart from the AmazonBasics one. I think they're only threatening those that are simply "easy enough" to copy without losing functionality and utility. The laptop stand is very close to the "easy enough" part of the spectrum. Things like USB hubs and ethernet cables, even closer.
Same. I'm not swayed by price. It's the build quality and materials that matter most to me. While there might be consumers who are drawn to Amazon's laptop stand, I'm willing to assume that the majority of buyers for Amazon's product would not have purchased the pricier options to begin with.
