Of course it would help, but I can't possibly see it happening.
There's always going to be the kid with his mom's credit card or the casual player who doesn't have the time to put in, and that;s fine with me. Where I agree with you is the fact that this is just an all round crappy move by 2K. Yes, they're in the business of making money, but it sucks to see an otherwise solid game bogged down by something so frustrating.