Unless you view privacy as all or nothing, I'd say replacing Google with Apple is progress. I think the majority of people are more upset at the idea of how their data is being sold for advertising than they are concerned about being able to act completely out of sight of any actor.
This may be true, but Apple can change that policy overnight. Apple also won't let you run programs that are not on its store, and won't even give you a Web browser. It's shocking people that people are willing to accept such restrictions. It isn't my hardware if I can't decide what runs on it.
Is it really shocking to you that people treat their entertainment device as an appliance? Everything I control is something I'm responsible for patching and fixing and adding new features to. I don't mind faffing about with my Linux desktop, but the TV needs to just work.