Do MMORPGs *have* to be boring?

The game mechanic of grinding is common across many MMORPGs for good reason, it is a proven money maker when done right.

If you think about it, this is a win-win scenario for both game developers of this genre and players: they get to wave the hypothetical equivalent of a carrot in front of their user-base that they'll never catch, and fans don't seem to mind one bit.