I wonder about the firmware perhaps getting upgraded. I will be going back to the client location soon and will try pairing again. Hardware looks the same. And like those who responded to my post, I have a couple of clients (Spectrum and Comcast) who use both a 3rd party controller and the Comcast remote for voice NAV. My longtime contact at the local Comcast office seemed unaware of this "issue". Perhaps I'm shooting at spooks. Will update. I wonder if once paired there is a further option on some hardware/firmware combos that can switch the operating mode of the paired remote between RF and IR?