Solving the Pasta Problem?

I've been seeing this 19.95-as-seen-on-tv-style ad on TV for the Pasta Express a lot lately and it's really been bothering me. This product claims to make cooking pasta easier and better than before. I seriously have to doubt this claim. Basically, you pour boiling water in the tube filled with pasta, and, presto! (actually many minutes later if you know anything about thermodynamics) you have crappy, soggy pasta.

Why do products like this keep popping up? And why always for $19.95?

So, I asked Seth Godin for his opinion. From his blog post:

So, how does it sell?

It sells because the point of the commercial isn't to sell you something that will help you make better pasta. The point of the commercial is to sell you something that you will enjoy buying.

More and more, we buy stuff where the buying is the point, not the stuff.

Good answer.