Couple points about speeding up the releases:

1.  Lower margin on tpbs or not, these things sell to people who will NEVER be regular buyers of hardcovers, for the obvious reason that they don't have the money.  I've seen the softcover Masterworks in Barnes and Noble and train station bookstores; I've never seen the hardcovers there.  There is a market penetration that doesn't exist with other formats.  The more of these out there, the more that will sell.

2.  I recall from misty memory someone saying that the hardcovers sell a lot right off the bat, then sales rapidly fall and limp along there after.  If it was a graph it would be a tall wave followed by a nearly flat line.  So the risk of cannabilizing hardcovers sales seems overblown to me.  Let's say they set a rule where the softcover would be published 3 years after the hardcover, and ran a schedule to catch up to that.  I think that would be enough time to recoup costs of doing the hardcover, without denting sales of HCs, and also providing a reasonably short wait for softcover fans.

3.  On a larger point, I think paperbacks needs their time in the sun.  People who can only afford cheaper options have only had Essentials in black and white, and those are into the 80s by now.  The DVDs are over.  Hardcover Masterworks have been chugging along for 8+ years now.  If other collections (and I don't mean the hardcover MMWs) have to be moved off the schedule to make room for 2 softcovers a month, I say that is totally fair.  Let people who want cheap color options get a little attention for now.  They have been waiting a loooong time for a truly comprehensive, accessible format.