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It is not excessive at all.
Time consuming, yes; but not excessive.
As bullet velocities go up (and cartridge pressure right along with it), the problem of bullet jacket fouling gets worse and worse. A standard factory bore that's almost unfired is fairly rough inside. The first bullets through it will be ground down almost as if you fired them over a file. Unless you get that jacket material and powder fouling out of there between shots, it will likely be there forever - and that bore will be even rougher for all its life.
Proper break-in removes not only the bullet jacket material, but the even harder powder fouling AND acts to "lap" the minor roughness out of the bore. A barrel that's been properly broken in stays cleaner, cleans up easier, and might even shoot a bit faster.
As an aside, custom barrels like Krieger, Shilen and such are hand-lapped when those companies install them. They don't need a break-in because the hand lapping is even better than a shooting break-in.
The good news is that shooting break-in needs to be done only once.
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