Does this mean that steampunk will hit the heights that cyberpunk did, then crash down into dust like cyberpunk? Tantilizing...
Somehow I doubt it... the lifecycle of cyberpunk was much different, and unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your point of view) got closely tied to 90's internet boom and the promise of full immersion VR. The bubble burst and I'm still waiting on my Ono Sendai VR deck...
Steampunk is tied to many things: fiction that spans 35 to almost 150 years, depending on who you ask; musical experiments; Victoriania in general; retro-technology fetishism; and DIY experimentation. (please don't be upset if I forgot something here) some of those influences may see a decline in interest, but I think Steampunk itself will be around in some form or another for sometime.