who (if anyone) is profiting off of the high costs of the bricks?
If the these become required, will every brick manufacturer be able to produce them, bringing the price of them down?
They seem to be a generic concept - basically they are like bird houses in the shape of a brick, so anyone can make them. The ones I've seen from a quick internet search are all made of different types of plastic stuck together i.e. they are not a really simple thing to make. So I guess that, along with supply and demand (only one or two are needed per new house), is why they are relatively expensive.