Subscription plans, plain and simple. Graal decided to use subscriptions, and it simply wasn't worth it. Very, very slowly some servers started to move towards free-access with gralatshops(where you could buy in-game items with IRL money) but it took too long.

Do realize Graal was asking I think... $40 a month to play. I may be wrong though, as I never actually purchased any subscriptions.

Just... very, very poor marketing on administration end, and the servers suffered because of it.