And for me - using only one animated cam usually anyway- it is straightforward to animate the material at the frame it should change. Just a matter of perception, thus I also see your point :)
Ahhh the eternal debate about multiple points of view using one animated camera VS multiple cameras using a btach render solution ;) on my side, batch render all the way, I've always found this solution much more flexible ... at least for my needs. Both solutions have their pros/cons, so I guess it's tricky to make everyone happy.
