Spotted at the official FFXIV forums;
"...We understand that some of you have some concerns regarding the item level restrictions for content; however, the development team is aware that there are players who are trying to challenge high level content without the proper amount of attack and defense, and would like to ensure that everyone participating in the content is on the same level.
Just to reiterate, this adjustment will be made in patch 2.1, and your average item level will be displayed in your character window. To coincide with this, we will also be adding a display for the required item level in the Duty Finder." --Camate, Community Rep
Source
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/threads/87509-Gear-level-the-final-nail-in-the-games-coffin./page6[/url]