Why was it ever allowed for companies to make unilateral contracts with no representation or limits? The entire ecosystem of digital platforms is full of absolutely ridiculous terms and agreements.

Not only there is no reason why digital media shouldn't be treated as a regular purchase, they want it both ways. Digital storefronts don't say "license" or "rent". They say "Buy", because they know people want to buy it, and many of them wouldn't pay if they couldn't buy it. It's downright deceptive that they label the transaction as a purchase then put a wall of legalese on some corner saying "actually 'buy' does not mean buy".