* it has always been locked down, from the get go, so it has never misrepresented itself to consumers or the people participating in its ecosystem
* it gained marketshare despite this very limitation, indicating that to some extent that is what consumers were expecting to purchase. Apple had zero marketshare in phones before iPhone. And many attempts have been made before and since, like Windows Phone, Fire Phone from Amazon, the Facebook phone, etc.
* they hadn’t, at the time, told anyone else not to participate in other stores or on other platforms
> it gained marketshare despite this very limitation, indicating that to some extent that is what consumers were expecting to purchase.
Have you ever watched the iPhone keynote? Either way I suggest you watch or rewatch, because it was marketed as a computer.
The reason people didn't care about the restrictions (compared to a general purpose computer) at the time was because it was such a leap forward in mobile devices.
* it has always been locked down, from the get go, so it has never misrepresented itself to consumers or the people participating in its ecosystem
* it gained marketshare despite this very limitation, indicating that to some extent that is what consumers were expecting to purchase. Apple had zero marketshare in phones before iPhone. And many attempts have been made before and since, like Windows Phone, Fire Phone from Amazon, the Facebook phone, etc.
* they hadn’t, at the time, told anyone else not to participate in other stores or on other platforms