"Average costumer doesn't give a crap about open source or not, as long as "it just works""

The first phone was simple and they just worked. There were no buttons to push, no operators to contend with. Just pick up the phone and speak.

It was a simple demonstration of what was possible, and I bet it sparked the imagination of the public.

I doubt they were thinking of who owned the patents, who would be doing the investment of the infrastructure, privacy issues and so forth. Let alone licensing issues behind the technology.