"The Eart is flat. I already know what the reaction to this eassay will be. Half the readers will say that the Earth is round".
Might not exactly be the case here (since he's talking for relevanece vs profits) but one can argue that continued and even increased profits must also show some kind of relevance.
But, most importantly, I wanted to show that foretelling what your critics might say doesn't make what you said any more correct.
Looks like he hit right on the spot.