SHUikeyNone of your replies actually answer the questions being posed.
I see no indication that anyone at Microsoft in a position of authority over this change is even aware of our concerns. My only reasonable assumption at this point is that whoever approved this change thinks it's no big deal, and doesn't understand why it's harmful and disruptive. MS reps who've posted here don't seem to have any understanding of why this is a concern to customers, or why such a dumb decision was made in the first place.
Microsoft knows they've got us locked into their ecosystem and simply switching away from Exchange Online isn't a viable option for most customers. The long-term picture is not good though, because this is just one example of the general disrespect for the customer that Microsoft has been displaying for years now. Eventually, these obnoxious and arbitrary disruptive changes will add up to a big enough problem that they push people away.