should they charge for the box?
yes. they are a company. they exist to make money so that they can employ individuals and pay them. the more the company makes, the more they can employ people and it's a good thing when people have jobs. would you ask this question if you had a job at blizzard? wouldnt it be cool to work for them?
now, do i grumble when i see the sticker price on the box, then realize im going to have to download hundreds of megs of patches which will take hours, then pay $15 a month to wait in a queue for an hour every time i want to play?
so yeah, i can understand the fustration behind your question, but it's kind of a loaded question. you know the answer is yes, the company should charge for the box because that's what the market will bear. and that wont change until a competitor comes into the market that doesnt charge for the box, or charges less for the box, and starts to lower their market share. but until then they're doing just fine and will continue to charge whatever they can get away with.
i dont get upset that i had to pay for my cell phone even though i have to pay for service every month. sure i could have gotten a "free phone" with the contract, but i'd rather fork over some cash for my treo.
<sarcasm> so, now that i've shared my mind i ask you, should hak5 charge for the show? ;) </sarcasm>