Inside source who said the announcement was incoming hours before it was made, claims they're looking into a few models to replace the current one:
1. cosmetics only (hopefully) OR
2. cosmetics + a specific star card bundle (to remove "gambling" aspect)
There will also be "booster" bundles purchasable with money. The typical Wargaming type where you pay to get a multiplier in EXP/Credit gain. This has been in the works long before everything began. Although it isn't technically "pay to win" it is still "pay to get there faster" on a fully priced game.
There's also talks of increase in Credit rewards and lowered cost of crates coming very soon (a few days) as an immediate fix before looking into other options/methods. (Hopefully this happens and stays permanent, if they don't scrap the loot boxes entirely and replace it with a traditional level up system with skill trees, etc.)
All of this is in reaction from a Disney rep calling EA/DICE about fixing this problem ASAP or they are threatening to pull the exclusivity right.
Apparently the original model was already approved by Disney, but they did not expect this much backlash. They do not want to be associated with "gambling" and especially this close to the release of The Last Jedi. They don't want bad PR to taint the image of the franchise.
My opinion on this: A lot of people are saying this is just a temporary measure to get sales back up, and put everything back in place after the heat has died down. I don't entirely agree with this. They still need a way to make up all the lost money from potential microtransaction sales for the free DLC and updates they promised. I don't think they dare to start charging for those now. They are definitely looking to change the model. There's no way they'll put everything back as they are. I don't think they're stupid enough to do that. No matter how "evil" you think EA is, they're definitely not going to that point of stupidity. This will impact future EA games they release. We've seen a trend in "loot crates" in their recent release, including Speed Card in the Need For Speed Payback (main reason I refuse to buy it, although I've been a long time NFS fan) but there's little chance the game will change. The base just isn't nearly as big as a Star Wars game. The NFS devs said they'll look into changing the "progression balance" as well but it will be nowhere as drastic as SWBF2 I bet.
The most realistic outcome for BF2 is a fully cosmetic microtransaction model, a bit like Destiny 2's Bright Engrams. At the same time, if they keep progression in loot boxes, I really hope they curve the reward better, and ease on the time it takes to get upgrades. I hope they scrap the loot box concept entirely and go the traditional skill tree method.
I'm also standing firm on my position of not buying the game regardless of what they'll do. I still have a few months of my EA Access and hopefully it'll land in the Vault before it expires. It really is a shame because from the Beta and the Early Access Trials, I liked what I played, except the loot boxes. It really is overshadowed by the one thing despite everything else being great.