Another story on it - http://www.allakhazam.com/story.html?story=16377
I think what gets me the most was the suddenness of it all. Very little warning. They knew it would go over with the community like a kick in the teeth and as such didn't hold it up for scrutiny.
From a personal standpoint, so long as it remains "fluff", I'm fine. As soon as usable gear or real game advantage items hit the Marketplace, that's game over for me. As much as Team Smedlo would have us believe that won't happen, I truly believe that is the eventual end-game planned for this service.