To be fair, this person could be using a business printer. Large multifunction printers offices use can cost $10k+ and require A LOT of work so small companies and firms that can’t outright afford the upkeep usually lease the printer and that lease comes with warranties and maintenance covered by the company its leased from.
And here's someone making excuses for a billion dollar company based on nothing but imagination. HP isn't your friend, they're only driven to seek profit.
What's more likely, that there's a legitimate reason the printer needs a subscription or that the printer company is just trying to nickle and dime the end user again to squeeze every penny out of them without providing additional value?
BTW when one of our offices large multifunction printer has issues we call the vendor that maintains it, NOT the company that manufactured it.
HP has something called an "instant ink" subscription plan
If you sign up for the plan, you cannot use ink official hp ink which is purchased in a store, you must use the ink hp ship's you when you get low. If your payment is declined, the printer is disabled until you go through their hateful cancellation progress, or you fix your payment and let them ship you new cartridges.