This would be true in a market driven by competition between near-equals.
The iPhone does not live in such a market. It has no competition. It is a qualitatively different product from other mobile phones. The cell phone market is divided into two categories: the iPhone, and inferior crud. If Apple were to begin charging $0.05 per "click", you would have to cough up the dough or switch to a vastly inferior product. Therefore, your ability to "vote" with your money is academic in this case.
Micropayments could easily become a standard, expected part of iPhone use. In that case, there will be no escape.
I suspect that this is the reason why Apple users complain about (even potential!) misfeatures to the extent they do. In the product categories where Apple is a player, from the standpoint of a dedicated Apple user, they have zero competition. All of the supposedly competing products are far below the quality-of-user-experience Apple users are accustomed to. Hence the perception that there is nowhere to run to.
Micropayments could easily become a standard, expected part of iPhone use.
Given how everything else you've said hinges on this assumption, you'd have done well to explain why you think it is true. Like I said before, you're conflating two markets.
As it depends on all players in a highly competitive market suddenly colluding to degrade the user experience upon which they all depend without anyone realizing that they might stand to make more money by not doing so, I find it hard to believe.
That doesn't relate at all to anything I've said, nor does it reinforce your point in the slightest. Your powers of misinterpretation are astounding and I hope that in the future you will refrain from commenting anywhere on anything.
Don't you think that a decision to begin charging 5 cents per click would significantly reduce the perceived quality of the iPhone?
I know it may be hard to believe, but we're just talking about cellphones here; I'm sure Apple is aware of the fact that doing something like that would be suicide in a very competitive market.
