It isn't the budgets, it's the scope (at least in IT/computing). In the last decade(s) there has been a move away from "blue sky" research to focusing on ideas that can be implemented in short timeframes like one year or less. "Little r, Big D" it's sometimes called. Places that used to fund core research in higher risk sectors have scaled back to focus on things that can be transitioned into products within 1-2 years.
