The catch-22 of the games-as-service feedback model

This has probably been discussed before, but it just occurred to me now as I was reading through complaints about azerite gear implementation in general.

Disclaimer: this is purely my speculation. I don't have any data to back this up, nor am I affiliated with Blizzard in any way.

Player satisfaction isn't a metric matters to Activision-Blizzard because we pay the same amount per month for a product regardless of how happy we are... up to the point of cancellation, of course. I suspect services and cosmetic purchases factor very little as well - either you're a whale or you're not - though to reiterate my disclaimer above, this is pure speculation with nothing concrete to back it up, and is aside from my main point anyway, that being:

The only metric Blizzard cares about is your subscription.

It's obvious, of course. Vote with your dollar, and all. If you don't like WoW right now, don't pay for it. Of course it's more complicated than that. Maybe the are things you DO like, and you have to weigh the pros and cons, but ultimately, if you want Blizzard to change something about the game, the best way to make them listen is to stop paying for the service.

And that brings us to the catch-22.

As soon as you stop paying for the service, you're no longer a customer... so why should Blizzard listen to you?

Obviously, you were a past customer or you're still a potential customer, and retention wants to get you back... but you're less important than a paying customer, since a paying customer is an actual customer and a non-paying customer... isn't.

Or maybe you don't want to quit WoW because you don't want to stop playing just to prove a point, because you do still enjoy the game, even if the are things you're displeased with. Maybe you just want to have a credible voice - a 'paying' voice - so that maybe Blizzard hears your complaints.

But your dollars speak louder than your words, so you're voting for the game to carry on in the way you dislike by continuing to play, despite whatever other misgivings you have.

Which is why I try not to think about things like this and just do my world quests like an obedient consumer...