It's not dying because of cash shops, though; its dying because of lack of innovation and a 10 ton whale sitting on the industry, and no one willing to move into the space, including investors, for fear of not getting WoW like returns or crowds. Either they import Asian grindfests or its Nostalgia progression stuff or crowdfunded forever projects like Chris Roberts' Spaceships Forever or Pantheon. The entire game space at one time moved onto MOBAs and FPS GAAS because MMOs were so stifled by WoW and MMO dev time/competition/returns. Only now does it look like a few companies are thinking about coming back as WoW appears to releasing its deathgrip on the market. Imagine FPSes dying in the same way because Fortnite owned that space so completely.
Amazon seems to be one of the few willing to make an entry in this space, although hopefully Riot comes in as well. Who cares what kind of alligator tears a competitor cries? If I had known it was the AOC guy raising a stink, I would have ignored it completely. It still sounds like an overreaction but even a warning shot might serve a purpose, I guess. This crybaby bullshit about ruining the game before it enters beta is ridiculous, though. Even Amazon has to make money, or no more MMOs will ever get made. These things aren't going to selll Prime memberships.