I think this is dead on. In meetings at work, 10 minutes is the norm. A quick "sorry, running late" seems to make people feel immune to keeping a room waiting.
I found it remarkably effective. It had the unexpected effect of making meetings end on time as well since folks would not be late for their next meeting. So while I found it somewhat 'quirky' from a culture perspective I had to admit it had a positive effect on time utilization.