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I believe they want you to use the API subscription if you want to use their service with OpenCode. It's possible, just more expensive.

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That is analogous to the water company charging you more if you use a faucet from another company. It's not a fair competition.

That's why we are supposed to have legislation to regulate that utilities and common carriers can't behave that way.

It wasn't just hooking up a new faucet. It was hijacking an API key intended for ClaudeCode specifically. So in this metaphor it would be hooking up a secondary water pipe from the water company intended only for sprinklers they provide to your main water supply. The water company notices abnormal usage coming from the sprinkler water pipe and shuts it off, while leaving your primary water pipe alone.

Possibly a better comparison (though a bit dated now) would be AT&T (or whatever telephone monopoly one had/has in their locality) charging an additional fee to use a telephone that isn't sold/rented to them by AT&T.

Comcast pulled this on me recently through what I can only describe as malicious bundling.

Internet + shitty "security" software that only runs on their hardware + modem rental is cheaper than internet only + bring your own equipment. You can't buy the cheaper internet+security package without their hardware (or so they claimed).

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