Oh Le Sigh LiLa, What Have You Done?

I attended an emergency town meeting in Caledon Oxbridge tonight, led by the Guvnah. He was not the only themed community leader in attendance however, as Mr NeoBokrug Elytis of the Wastelands was present, as well as many other concerned community leaders such as Miss Serra Anansi of Winterfell and other major estate managers, including those of the Realm of the Roses (Brythony, Wyre, Lovelace). The issue? Linden Labs has changed their pricing for openspace void sim regions, effective January 1, citing "overload" issues. Why is this a problem? We are talking about a 66% increase in the monthly fee for owners.

"Well, I'm not an openspace or void sim owner, why should I care?" you may ask. Let us think about it, shall we? Caledon, for example, consists of 20 void sims (the Duchies) and 23 full sims. The Guvnah would not be able to continue to charge his current price but for so much longer before having to soon pass the costs onto the void sim owners. If the owners are unable or unwilling to pay more, and someone else does not assume it, then the cost will pass back to the Guvnah. The very nature of the community that you enjoy could be changed dramatically. It is not just Caledon that would be affected...we are talking about Antiquity, New Babbage (Doctor Obolensky's lair is a void), the Wastelands and more. For smaller openspace sim owners, this increase could be even more devastating. Across the grid, there could be losses and perhaps a backfiring blow (yet again) to SL's economy.

Am I being the voice of doom? No. I personally believe that, as we have two months, reacting with knee-jerk reaction panic is not the solution. We might not like the policies foisted upon us sometimes, but we do like being inworld remember? As citizens, we can make our voices heard. If you would like to really know what else I truly think about the overall regarding this (such as my belief that openspace sims undermine LiLa's full sim sales), do peruse my other journal HERE.