Interesting
I often wondered why the cable companies in the US do this sort of thing. Virgin in the UK give you a box (well, it's included in your package price) and will replace it for free if it breaks. The flipside is that you can't really buy your own with more features. They do try to sell you better packages that come with better boxes though (originally HD, though that's standard now, or boxes that can record TV).
Why is the UK so different?
Biting the hand that feeds IT
