I ask myself that about nearly every popular consumer item the past few years.

Companies are extraordinarily anti-consumer now, but in ways that indulge the customer such that they don't realize it.

I don't know what to say about it other than the anecdotal observance; companies won't stop the behavior -- it's extraordinarily profitable ; and it generally seems as if the public doesn't care. It nudges the perceived quality up a bit and the consumer doesn't bother reading the 75 page EULA, so they're generally unaware that they own very little of the product they paid so much for.

I find myself pining for the days when a consumer transaction was , generally, a simple A-B money-for-product type transfer rather than this constantly connected service industry that everything has slowly evolved into.

Sorry for the rant, I offer no solutions , only hope that there may be a solution somewhere that will give the rights back to the consumer while remaining competitive enough that the company that supports the people will flourish; i'm not holding my breath -- but thinks like the framework laptop and so on are a step in the right direction and a sign of hope for me personally that i'm not the only one with consumer rights on their mind.