Perhaps you could list those "equally effective products."
260 Remington
6.5x47 Lapua
7-08 Remington
Are three cartridges that are equally effective, launching bullets with a G1 BC above .65 at 2650fps to 2750fps. The two Remington cartridges were not marketed terribly well and suffered poor uptake leading to poor choices of factory ammunition.
In my experience the Lapua cartridge is slightly easier to get an accurate load for than the Creedmoor, but it is a handloader only proposition (with relatively expensive high quality brass). So whilst it is equally effective, it isn't even close in availability and only appeals to those who build custom rifles and handload. It is not an 'everyman' proposition like the others.
You could also throw 6.5 Swede in there too if you were shooting a Tikka T3 with their medium length action.
Some will say that the 260 gets higher velocities than the Creed, which delivers higher velocities than the Lapua. At less than 70fps between each one that difference is a mind game, not a discernible difference at the point of impact. It is ammunition in summer v winter, a fast barrel v a slow one, a 24in v a 22in barrel.
Similarly, you could add a fast twist 243 and 22/250 in there if companies chose to make them. After all, a 6mm Creedmoor equals performance of a 243 but commonly found twisted to 1:8 or 1:7.5 instead of the usual 243 1:9.5 or 1:10.
I'm not saying the Creedmoor does not deserve a reputation for easy accuracy and useful performance for the everyman. There is no other combination that you could buy from most any sporting goods store that would perform as well out of the box - this is why the 223 is more popular than the 222 or 222 Magnum. I am saying that equal results can be achieved with other cartridges when chambered in rifles with similar specifications and loaded with similar ammunition.
Many years ago the same feverish support was observed around the 270 Winchester and the 300 Weatherby at their respective times so this is nothing new in the shooting world.
