Lock-in
Etymology
A plain English compound of "lock" and "in," from the literal act of locking someone inside. It became a term of art in economics and technology in the late 20th century to describe switching costs, especially "vendor lock-in" for customers trapped in one company’s ecosystem.
noun · /LOK-in/
A situation where the cost of switching away from a product, standard, or path is high enough to keep you stuck with it.
What it names
A handle for why we stay with inferior tools and systems — not because they’re best, but because leaving is expensive.
Example
Once all her files, contacts, and habits lived in one company’s apps, the lock-in made even a better competitor feel unthinkable.
Related idea
Path dependence explains how history narrows future options; lock-in is the resulting trap — the point where those accumulated costs actively hold you in place.