Studios typically compete with each other by releasing the same concepts within months of each other.
Think Deep Impact vs. Armageddon, Dante's Peak vs. Volcano, Antz vs. Bugs Life, The Prestige vs. The Illusionist
I feel like these are exceptions to the rule. I think studios capitalize upon things that are "trending," so to speak, but the examples you provide are ridiculous examples of serendipitous confluence. Everyone wants to strike while the iron is hot, sure. But it's not often that you see films with plotlines that are so virtually identical as the examples you've listed. At least in my opinion. You've listed 4 examples in roughly 20 years, I'd guess.
Okay, I checked, it's 17 years. And 3 of your 4 examples were in 1997 or 1998. Not exactly enough correlation to make grand suppositions.