I think this partly explains gen z's constant complaint of not being able to afford a house. Most people didn't used to pay for TV (there's this invisible signal going over the air!) and now everyone pays for Netflix. People did pay for premade food (TV dinners, canned food, etc) but now they're paying for a restaurant-level expense one or multiple times a day. They're purchasing equipment in online games, subscribing to a million online services, constantly buying junk from peddlers like Temu, Amazon, etc. $100 home internet, $70 mobile phone service, $1000 phones? They're throwing their money away. And while they technically could stop, I'd argue that we have all been programmed to do this, to the point most people probably are unable to stop. Consumerism is addictive. I'll bet in the future your paycheck comes pre-deducted with all your subscriptions "to help you afford food and housing", and it'll be provided by Stripe.