I'm sure if the EXP rate was a little lower than it is now, if it was that way from the start and wasn't decreased from what it is now, then the people who like the current rate wouldn't complain. I've always liked the non-levelling activities in these games over the grind to get there. I have tried quite a few other MMORPGs that I gave up on most of them because grinding took too long and doing that day after day was too much of a chore to bother with. The only drawback I see with how it is now is that any lower/mid-level content is pointless since you can level beyond it quickly - if you even stop for it at all.

I think Sephrick has a good idea of what SE might be planning with this. They want to make some content that is only available before 2.0 goes live but it is best to gear it towards level 50 characters so that it will be challenging for everyone, so that level 50's can't breeze through it. However, since this content will only be available until 2.0 is released it makes sense to let players reach level 50 in a short time so most people will be able to experience this exclusive content.

When 2.0 is active and when the level cap is increased I imagine that the EXP curve will turn steeper and provide more of a journey through the higher levels.