and how much money was spent developing this “inexpensive” process? 
Enough to justify nudging out the competition, I imagine. But they have to compete with the entourage effect of well bred pot. I’m betting it’ll take some time before they can be something worth sniffing at beyond cheap sources of thc or terps to “boost” lower grade products.
but we’re talking artificial cannabinoids. The kinds that can be patent protected for legal monopoly. The worry then, in my mind, is that it is in these company’s best interest to have a world in which their product can be sold and similar ones, the real ones, cannot. They have incentive to make a world like that happen and this is big pharma we’re talking about - they have the money and connections to do just about anything they want.