With all the tread locking I know you're reading so I have a little advice for you:

HIRE A MARKETING ADVISER!!

Your first mistake was over estimating how much people like this game, sure it's great but people don't want to grind for the same item everyone has. All you've achieved is making the game harder and less enjoyable for new players removing your ability to expand and chasing off current players.

I know you need people to buy ce with real money but instead of screwing with game dynamics and ruining it in the eye's of the players try something else,

give away posters with every $10 or $20 dollers purchase, randomize the image so people need to collect several (and not knowing which will arrive in the mail may be fun). With more expensive purchases like $50 - $100 give away a shirt, people WILL pay more cash for IRL items and you have people asking in threads about merchandise.

A friend of mine thinks a lottery system for ce purchase would be good, a random ce purchase of $10 - $100 has the chance of coming up with double the ce, this will add more incentive and fun to the buying process but will cost you nothing to provide, the business dream.

I know this may not belong in general discussion but i wish to hear more suggestions from other people who aren't bothering to play with the new system as you have locked our petition thread more than once, which in my opinion is rather childish but instead of complaining I'm opening the topic for discussion.