Prisons and terms of incarceration are managed by the government and not by free market. This critique should be addressed to the legislature and not to capitalism.
Depending on your prefered format, patience and number of games you play it can be actually free or it can cost you thousands od dollars.
I spent around 20 dollars since I started playing in 2019. I have practically all cards for standard format i want to use + bank of gems and gold to purchase new set when it comes out in September.
You are correct. I guess Annapurna can be considered a "publisher with good taste".