This is what happens when you allow marketing people to run the show.
The T20 format is very popular in the UK. I'm going to Lord's on Thursday to watch Middlesex v Hampshire, weather permitting the place will be a sell out. England was the first country to really commit to T20 cricket but since then it's failed to build on that early success and watched every other cricket playing nation (and a few non-cricket playing nations) develop popular franchise leagues.
Realistically it's the ECB's failure to balance maintaining traditional values with modern thinking that has lead them down this path but then you could probably argue that that's a fundamental problem in this country full stop - just look at Brexit!
I can recall they had another format with hitting zones and bonus runs which would make it more interesting for the cricket fans. Changing the game too much as we know it now will move it in another direction and that is totally wrong. Can only see this as a shambles and confusing new fans they are trying to find. The way you get new fans is by playing a brand of cricket that wins matches. They see the IPL and want full stadiums for their domestic games and that is never going to happen. You can't compare England to India with it's fan base.