Well. If I had to take a shot in the dark, it would go something like this:
They refused them because with a label that says 1.4 on it, they can hype the crap out of it to J6P, telling him that they absolutely have to buy this $125 3ft V1.4 cable if they ever want to get 3D. They are counting on the consumer to be completely unaware that cable ratings are different from the HDMI hardware ratings. In fact, it's possible some of their employees honestly believe what they are pushing as the truth, who knows.
After all, a 3ft 1.3a normal speed cable will probably do just as well as a 1.3b that is greater in length by multiples. Lots of more educated folks, including some AHers, get the thinner normal speed cables when purchasing the most common lengths (short), because they have more flex to work with behind the TV.
