I'm wondering about something from a historical perspective. Consider the Nikon-Canon wars and how difficult it can be to switch brands when one wants to. Consider as a counter-argument stereo equipment. I have an Arcam preamplifier, a B&K main amp, Dali loudspeakers, and Nordost cabling. I used to have an NAD preamplifier. My DVD player is Sony. I think you see my point -- interchangeability. When I switched from NAD to Arcam for my preamp I didn't need to change anything else. The interfaces were all the same, things worked together. I'm not locked into Arcam, or into NAD, or into B&K. The personal computer industry is another example of this interoperability.

The same is not true in photography. Switch from Canon and you can't use your lenses anymore. Switch from Nikon you can't use your lenses anymore. You get locked into a manufacturer. My question is, why did the customer base not mind this in the first place? Why has it been tolerated?

Interesting question. Probably because it's always been that way & we don't know any different? Of course the whole RAW file issues is possibly going to change that once we users all get irritated enough with it.