I don't think you can really blame marketing...if someone isn't wise enough to get past those things that come at you in an ad, well, not much to be said. No ad has ever convinced me to buy something -and especially stick with it, or change what I'm comfortable with. Then again, I don't have cable, and my cell phone broke 2 month ago and I've no intention on replacing it.
If I had my way, I'd have a cheese factory in Switzerland or something!