This happens in other markets just fine, one that springs to mind is oscilloscopes. Often you will find that a the hardware in one model is the same as the hardware in scopes in the same "family", what differs is software / locks set. This allows the manufacturer save on costs during manufacture but place the R&D cost (and profit from that R&D) onto the customers requiring those needed features.

Its quite common to buy a lower end scope and unlock some extra sample size, seom extra bandwidth, some extra decoders by following a guide found on the net. (My personal theory as to why manufacturers don't lock these down more is because it gets home lab engineers more inclined to buy a brand they know they can hack and get the best bang for their buck in the hopes that will help drive sales when it comes to their companies requiring new lab gear).

If I were to give Intel the benefit of the doubt, They currently have a sizable SKU count in any generation of processor that are basically the same silicon under the hood just binned/hardware locked differently based on any manufacturing defeats and customer demand. If the locks already exist (be it hardware locks atm) why not move those locks to software and allow customers to unlock extra features as required?

As long as Intel don't a) convert to a "pay as you go"/subscription model or b) pump up the base price to gouge customers on common features I'm not going to loose any sleep over it, however but it wouldn't be the first time a company has fucked over customers.