I think too that since the error was made in the early 80s, all home video releases would have contained this error and generally people wouldn't have realized there WAS an error. Of course, if people had known they would have wanted a corrected copy.

But I think the primary difference is that Coppola actually shelled out the money to restore the original versions of "Godfather". Even Spielberg is putting out ET on Blu-Ray and says it will be ONLY the original version.

Whereas George Lucas is aware that the original versions are slowly fading and rotting away, and not only doesn't he care, but he PREFERS it that way.

EDIT: And according to some reports, the original negative has been deliberately vandalized (i.e. special edition shots were actually spliced into the NEGATIVE). That isn't the same thing as some Paramount home video employee who didn't know what he was doing.