Originally Posted by
potaco
So it's purely coincidence that vanilla WoW wasn't launched with any pay-to-____ features? It's a slippery slope fallacy to say that this will lead to buying gear and levels with real money, but the seed has been planted. Blizzard said no PVE -> PVP transfers, then implemented them. No race changes, then implemented them. No faction changes, then implemented them. No Horde/Alliance on same PVP server, then allowed it. They've proven that nothing is set in stone. Depending on customer wants (and some $$$), anything is possible.
As far as cash for items, it started with tickets to Blizzcon. Buy a ticket, get an in-game reward. Cosmetic, of course. Then it was plush toys with bonus in-game pets and "charity" pets on the Blizzard Store. Then it was purely digital items (mount and pet). Now it's an exclusive service.
Watching the progression, it's not hard to imagine a WoW with both a cash shop and a monthly subscription. We're already on our way.