But IMO there is a difference between cashing in on an available property (Star Wars merchandising and tie-ins pre-1997), and cashing in on the fading collective memory of a property that nobody can actually have anymore (Star Wars merchandising and tie-ins 1997 and onward).
I don’t see what the difference is between cashing in on OOT merch and cashing on on SE/PT/ST merch. It’s all merch.
Pre-1997, you could buy the merch AND see the thing you loved that motivated the purchase. Post-1997, you can just buy the merch based on a memory of loving something a few decades back. To me, that’s a notable distinction.
But as I said, that distinction only applies when people can’t acquire the originally loved thing. But I can. People can. It’s been mentioned in more than a few articles. Whether they want to bother or not is up to them.
Meanwhile, if I mention loving the original Original Trilogy, I get called a “purist” by my friends and acquaintances, so there we are. If people don’t care, they won’t bother, and that’s on them.