Sure, if they did it I wouldn't protest against it.
But, as you say, there are plenty of graphic LCD controllers but basically only ONE standard for characters based displays and that IS the HD44780 (or compatibles). It's also a lot easier to drive than the graphical controllers, trust me I've tried with the RA6963C and the SSD1307. One issue is that the HD44780 basically just works and doesn't care about the number of characters per line etc, it doesn't care about the size (appart from number of lines) of the panel it's actually driving. But the graphical controllers are usually quite flexible when it comes to resolution of the panel and needs to be configured properly (not to mention timings, multiplex ratios etc etc.

My experience with MeLabs is that what they do they do properly and to do a general purpose GLCD driver to their standars is a LOT of work.

I wonder what they ARE working on at MELABS HQ nowadays, there's been no updates to compiler for 18 months. Darrels recent and unfortunate passing must have put a real dent in available resources

/Henrik.