[vegetablepotpie]

The short answer is that investors like the companies in their portfolios to have recurring payments. This leads companies to offer product features as subscription services. This makes them do things to keep you from modifying the device, such as using proprietary parts, employing device serialization, and using the DMCA to sue you when you attempt to modify a device.

There’s an awful lot of collusion behind the scenes. When one company starts a practice that drives revenues, all companies start doing it. Investors demand it. Then you see things like industry wide shifts. Where you can’t get a certain product that existed a few years ago no matter how much you’re willing to spend.

There might a free market, but when consumers are talking pennies and investors are talking dollars, you won’t have a lot of influence on it.