How will tools like this persist after Google enforces WEI for people using youtube?
I believe they will be very reticent to cut off access to this long tail of users with outdated computers, with no account on shared IPs. As long as this is true, it will be possible to use youtube in contradiction to their TOS. They could lock things down quite tight overnight by requiring people to sign in and use up to date browsers/players, but doing so would threaten their ubiquity.
You're probably right. For my part at least, 720p video from youtube almost always satisfies me (and leaves me with more battery life anyway.)
They will not, that is the whole point of WEI.