The balance is already here.
Traders are a bit rough but even that can be worked against. Fr00bs have tournaments, they are pretty even. Either with OSBs or without. Even on my totally PvM characters, I still have a fair chance against most.
So, some minor touching up there and good to go.
Main focus of AO has always been PvM.
The PvP is just there as pacifiers for the veterans when they run out of content to do. It fits so neatly too. Most of the time you have to twink like crazy to stand a chance and that takes end game funds with PvM game knowledge.
Now consider other games, you spend just ~30% or less of your levels in a happy PvM sand pen, learn and then you get tossed out to PvP for the rest of the game.
Yeah. No way that the PvPers are a significant portion of the community.
Some bored vets, some mixed ones, some VP farmers, some that get dragged to Tara or towers out of org / faction loyalty but don't want to do it and then very few PvPers.