Another question for the community

Looking at Brandnew's best/worst of 2017 list I noticed a very obvious trend: Simplifying marks. Many of the brands represented have a lot invested into market research. Why do you believe this trend is happening (or perhaps it's bigger than a trend and a shift)?

Reference article:
https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/the_best_and_worst_identities_of_2017_in_case_you_missed_it.php