One use-case you didn't mention is when the user doesn't want ShadyISP to sell their browsing habits (which are conveniently linked to a billing address, name, and more), despite the user understanding that governments could still potentially have access.
>You're right that at the end of the day, it's just someone else seeing where you visit
You write this as if it's some trivial little detail. Who that someone is that is privy to your browsing habits is a significant detail.
Everyone with an internet connection should at least read the Key Findings, just the first few pages of that report.
I assume that regional or small ISPs have similar practices, but these big ones have been M&A’d into massive orgs having control of “a much larger and broader cache of consumer data than ever before, without having to explain fully their purposes for such collection and use, much less whether such collection and use is good for consumers.”
That's fair. Governments may get it either way, but I doubt they bother to sell the data - and a paid-for VPN obviously wouldn't want to sell it, assuming they're worried about getting caught and losing customers.
>You're right that at the end of the day, it's just someone else seeing where you visit
You write this as if it's some trivial little detail. Who that someone is that is privy to your browsing habits is a significant detail.