You have to realize, that the time-played metric is more important than a flat fee they’d only get once, unless it was massively overcharged. But people won’t pay for it if it’s massively overcharged.
Its pmuch how WoW has operated for quite a while now, hence the time and severe rep gating (like HoA ilvl being bound by rep/WQs they control the appearance of) and they offer that empty content to investors as proof of a “successful” game.
Pretty easy to see it.