I recently established new cable service. I told my cable company
that I didn't want or want to pay for digital cable. They supplied me
with three digital cable boxes for free with no monthly charges.
There website said $1.98 per box per month. They did charge me $3 for
each remote control as a one time charge. Maybe I just have a decent
cable company that wants my business?

When I picked up the cable boxes they recorded the media address on
each of the boxes. They put the media addresses in their system and
the boxes won't function if they are not put into their system.

Maybe the cable company won't take your old media address out of their
system and your old box will function indefinitely? Maybe they will
remember to take your old box out of their system and it will stop
functioning?

I am paying $78/month for extended cable programming and Internet
service. I pay AT&T $29/mo for unlimited local and long distant
Internet phone service.