C'mon guys, this is a fee. It's just like the other airlines selling "preferred" seats for 10 bucks.
More fees are coming, because that's the nature of the airline business these days. If you don't like them (and, as a consumer, I'm not fond of them) sorry.
If I weren't cheap (frugal?), and I was travelling with my family, I would do exactly what some of the above posters have mentioned and buy ONE early bird seat. No frequent WN flyer will EVER buy more than one for their family (at least after they do it once.
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I wonder how many of these they will sell. My guess -- no more than a handful each flight (which I guess is more cash than they had before!). This whole "check in 24 hours before flying to get the best seats" is kind of an "inside baseball" thing. Very few airlines do this. I doubt that many of the people who currently game the system will be reaching into their pockets to buy the privilege. They'll simply lump the fact that 4 more guys will be in front of them (big deal). The rest of the travelling public won't understand and most will simply pass up the offer and save the money. At least when the other airlines sell preferred seats, you know exactly what you're buying. Buying "preferential boarding" is just too darn obscure for the American public.
At least that's my guess. And I'm a pretty good guesser on this stuff.