Personally, I can't really hold Freescale's failure to pursue the e700 core against them. It reminds me of Motorola and the 68K. I was really into that family line (and when the 68030 came out I was convinced it was going places). Motorola did forge ahead with the 68060 (an incredible processor) even after losing a huge part of its market.
If it doesn't sell, you've got to move on. The e600 series did not sell well and like the 68060 that spelled doom for a future successor.
Freescale's current shift in marketing merely reflects what they think will be profitable.

When Applied Micro actually lets someone see some of this mythical silicon, then I'll start to place more faith in their press releases.