This is the first I've heard of no actual development manager (or equivilant). Back in the olden days, there were instances of the project manager actually being the manager of the developers though.

I could see the "no manager" aspect work in small, self disciplined teams where each member has skin in the game (ownership), but not outsourced teams with no accountability. If that is a trend, it is a Darwinian trend sure to extinguish itself naturally.