Yes, I chose to pay for the phone. Apple chose to sell the phone at a price they felt adequate compensation for their "decades" of work.
Apple is currently seeking to leverage their monopoly[1] on the iOS platform by extracting additional rent[2] from content providers.
Their probability of success directly correlates with their pricing power.
Is this rent-seeking good for Apple customers? Unlikely.
Is it legal? Depends on how the FTC views Apple's pricing power.
kb
[1]In economics, a monopoly exists when a specific individual or an enterprise has sufficient control over a particular product or service to determine significantly the terms on which other individuals shall have access to it. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly)
Apple is currently seeking to leverage their monopoly[1] on the iOS platform by extracting additional rent[2] from content providers.
Their probability of success directly correlates with their pricing power.
Is this rent-seeking good for Apple customers? Unlikely. Is it legal? Depends on how the FTC views Apple's pricing power.
kb
[1]In economics, a monopoly exists when a specific individual or an enterprise has sufficient control over a particular product or service to determine significantly the terms on which other individuals shall have access to it. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly)
[2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_rent