RichatMHTI understand the technology of SDV, at least as explained by Wikipedia. What I do not understand is the manner in which the technology is being implemented by the cable provider. Why not switch to the Power On Channel for instance ?People are different and should be able to use the services they pay for according to their individual tastes or needs. For instance, assume that I am to some degree physically challenged. I may not be able to react quickly enough to a message on my screen. There should be a way to accommodate the SDV technology and the wishes of the subscriber no matter the length of their attention span.
First, since the goal of SDV is to save bandwidth, it switches to a low bandwidth channel. A lot of the VOD stuff is already loaded into the box, and very little bandwidth is used until a VOD selection is made. As far as your hypothetical physical disability, simply use the channel up/down button every few hours. You'll never see that evil message again.