If you don't look after the current quarter, there will be no no 'ahead'.
Every single time they offered upgrades for sale they made insane amounts of money from selling them. They are not selling them so they are not making money from them except as byproduct of them being an EM ecash sink.
You seem to have missed the memo. I'm not suggesting they sell upgrades. I am suggesting they sell something that can help players compete with those having upgrades - there's a bit of a difference. You can rent a $30 premium katar for a couple years for what you will pay for a upgrade katar off of EM. But nobody says you HAVE to keep renting one. You can buy one for a quareter the price of that EM katar.
See the difference?
The only ones that can possibly work are the ones that have a tangible business pauyback benefit. Again, you are adept at criticizing, yet woefully lacking in putting forward anything that has a tangible benefit.
IMHO spending $80 on a permanent, char-locked premium weapon is a way cheaper buy-in than spending $200+ to forge a new one (if they were being sold) or $400+ to buy one off EM. Yes, I am making the game sooo much more expensive.
Again, what is your proposal? Free upgrade weapons for everyone? And how does that keep this game alive?