Nokia, Apple and the vendors have everything to do with this. The went one step to far when they allow the operator to dictate what features are available on full price "unlocked" devices. (Well there are no fully unlocked devices any longer on WP8 or iOS, they lock functionality depending on what SIM you put in.)
To "semi brick" the devices when a certain SIM is put in just because the carriers have not figured out how to throttle or charge for data is ridiculous.
It is also worth noting that;
1. We already overpay for service in the US
2. LTE is almost twice as fast in Europe, 35 to 60 mb (As with previous technologies the US gets only half the speed)
3. This is more or less only a US problem as no decent carrier would come up with the idea to charge extra for the data just because it is used outside the device itself.
Basically we get twice the cost or more and half the speed here in the US.
International Herald Tribune
According to the study, Verizon Wireless...charges $7.50 for each gigabyte. ... more than 10 times what consumers pay in Sweden. ... Having a data-only plan...would reduce the per-gigabyte charge at Verizon Wireless to $5.50.
See
Why American LTE Costs Far More than in Europe - Input Output
OpenSignal - The State of LTE