Authors deliberately blocking relationship progress just to stretch chapters?

Guys, does anyone else feel like a lot of authors intentionally refuse to move the relationship forward between the MC and the heroines just to keep the novel going longer?

I recently read a harem/romance novel that went all the way to chapter 350. Even in the final chapter the MC and the heroines still hadn’t shared a single kiss. I got so frustrated I started skipping huge chunks.

It feels like the whole story is designed to keep the romance frozen so the author can keep pumping out chapters. And I know I’m not the only one who drops novels because of this. Once it becomes clear there’s zero real progress in the relationships, a lot of readers just quit midway.

What do you guys think? Is this a common tactic, or have I just been unlucky with my recent reads?