> "not everyone realises how much is invested in ambitious, groundbreaking tours"
How many people would see those? Hundreds? Thousands? Probably not one percent compared to sales. Then again fans would still like to buy it. Whoever wanted to hear the tracks at a gig, will wait for the gig before buying the album. I don't see how tour timing is related here. Tour posters will be visible anyways to remind people about the artist - it's not like they got cancelled.
> "collaborations with brilliant artists"
Again - what does it have to do with the release date?
> "lovingly designed packaging"
Not related to digital sales at all.
> "All that happens is a lot of great ideas and music come under threat."
To me it translates to: We were waiting so you can all experience the release in a way we imagined it, but apparently all you wanted was the music, not our tours, designs and marketing campaigns. And because of that the music came under threat. The horror!