Sounds like they are trying to get the fat over heating launch PS3 off the streets, they continue to fail after repairs so this is a smart move.
Sony should make it so you can transfer the HDD from a dead PS3 to a new PS3 without losing all your data, this will make the whole idea of sending out refurbished systems a lot easier for the consumer that have hundreds of hours on the bricked PS3.
They need to make it a lot easier for people to retain their data if they have to get a new system.