Braben et al didn't want to weaken the copyright I guess since they were doing Elite 4/Elite: Dangerous.
Much generously documented by Ian Bell e.g.
David Braben sues Ian Bell for libel https://groups.google.com/g/uk.legal/c/ZmgmhpuitXQ
David Braben sues EMAP for copyright infringement https://web.archive.org/web/20160328014216/http://www.eliteh...
David Braben threatens the Elite Home Page https://web.archive.org/web/20230824005005/http://www.iancgb...