This is at least in large part how the locking down of smartphones began. People either weren't around yet or don't remember how much of a wild west smartphones were for malware, scams, etc. when they first reached mass market uptake. There was a while there where companies were blocking smartphones from their networks because of the security risks.

It took Apple and their closely integrated/walled garden approach and insistence to sway the perception. And that's what other manufacturers then decided to emulate.