While some were able to smell it from miles away, Turbine today announced that they will be making their successful MMO Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar free to play this fall. Exactly how it is supposed to work is not yet clear, but certainly they are taking inspiration from their own Dungeons & Dragons Online Unlimited that so far has been a roaring success for the company since they went from a subscription based MMO to one getting its money from an item shop.
If you want to find more, Turbine have posted a FAQ on their site and also put up a special page explaining what current subscribers can expect to gain from staying subscribed.