Here's the problem, midir. The $6 fee does two things for Blizzard, in my opinion. One plainly visible, one less so.

The first thing is it covers their investment in the hardware. It took them time to research, design, and produce it. Like the article says, this probably covers the bare bones cost of the item. It is not Blizzard's responsibility to make sure that their users are not doing things that get their computers compromised. So to have us cover the physical cost of the device, I think, is a fair trade.

Second, it provides a barrier to entry. If it was free, a larger number of people would go through steps to obtain said device, because it was free and it 'helps security'. You have to understand, if you link this device to your account and you lose it or break it or throw it in the washing machine or whatever it? You have to call Blizzard and it's going to take time out of their payroll to fix the situation. They don't WANT everyone to have one because that brings a wider swathe of people who get it without understanding it and the responsibilities it dictates.

This is also, I daresay, the reason they're not 'including it' with the expansion. Aside from the cost issues that would present.

Just my take on it anyway.