So I remember that it was about 6-7mo from when I heard the FoF Alpha starting to the Cata release. It just takes about that amount of time of testing to truly test the massive amount of content of an xpac.Blizzard just announced a Mists of Pandaria Press Tour in 6 weeks. The expansion is definitely closer and it means we might finally see some new MoP information soon!
For reference, the Cataclysm Friend & Family Alpha started on the first week of may and the actual Cataclysm press tour happened a month later.
Originally Posted by Blizzard
A Break in the Mists: Alert the Press!
Since the announcement of World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria at BlizzCon 2011, we’ve been hard at work on all of the new game features, environments, dungeons, and other content that awaits adventurers. Today, we’re inviting members of the press worldwide to get an updated sneak peek and some hands-on time with the latest version of World of Warcraft’s fourth expansion at an event taking place March 13 - 15.
So If we take my horrid back of the envelope calculations:
March Press Event
+1mo (from above) Apr FoF (I think the Cata closed alpha was 1-2mo)
June Beta -- those of us who signed up for a year get in!
Sept Release
It's been over a year since the cata FoF alpha and beta, so my memory of timings may be off.
Of course this being blizzard: When it's ready.
And after playing Star Wars with it's every other day maintenance and many patches per month.... I am VERY much coming to appreciate WoW's "When it's ready" attitude.