And seems to me that this has become even worse since then. See this comment from less than a month ago:
This is a disgusting and unethical practice. I got bricked out of my mfc l3770cdw last week after unconsciously updating the new firmware bc of a data remaining in memory error that refused to clear on the screen. Not only could I not print, I also could not scan to desktop which baffles me since NO toner/ink is needed for that job! I was paying $70/3rd party toner set every 6 months and now have to pay $300+/set just to satisfy shareholder returns. This just adds to my list of why humans suck! I wouldn’t mind paying more for the equipment and then having the freedom to use whichever 3rd party has the best supply price or even double for the set that 3rd parties charge. Too many companies are engaging in this practice and something drastically needs to be done about this bs!