Not only am I happy they did announce it this early.. I think for any MMO coming in to the arena at this day & age, it is absolutely necessary to get a leg up and boost some interest in the gamer crowd.
I agree 100% with
Miltiades 
Far too many major players in the race nowadays to leave interest up to chance. We ALL know about gamer's and their whims..
hehehe. Between Granddaddy WoW and the nuclear family of Everquest, Guild Wars, Lotro, DDO, etc. etc. ToR has their work cut out to compete.
Granted, if ToR hadn't updated the community in the ways (and frequency) it has to date, it would've been folly to announce it this early... but so far I think ToR has got their mind in the right zone. Loving what they're doing, and can't wait for this game to become a reality (and my wallet sink
)