black mesa teleporter tech is different to aperture tech, both visually and in function. it's not designed by black mesa, so there's no connection between the new rebel teleporter and the portal gun.
barney had been fighting combine for a week straight, keeping the rebellion propped up in gordon's absence. that's pretty impressive. perhaps he's been abducted by gman as another possible investment?
why is it commercial suicide? existing customers already have most of the games in the bundle, so they're not ripping valve off. crazy value for new customers ensures a larger customer base. sounds like a good strategy to me.