Isn’t it typical?
Just when LL appear to be doing something right for once, and taking steps to address upset and concerns over the future of youngsters and educational activities in Second Life – they then go and do this…
While it is an enormous relief to the majority of us that our tiers are unlikely to increase as a result of LL hiking up the (already exorbitant) cost of sim rental, the second part of Nelson’s post must come as a real kick where it hurts to educators and non-profits alike, specifically:
2) We will adjust how education and non-profit advantages are provided, effective Jan. 1, 2011.
All education and non-profit private regions of any type, purchased after Dec. 31, 2010, will be invoiced at standard (i.e. non-discounted) pricing. All currently discounted renewals which occur after Dec. 31, 2010, will be adjusted to the new price at that time. To continue to provide entry-level, private spaces to educators just launching their programs, we will be providing Homestead and Open Space regions to qualifying organizations without their meeting the retail full-region criterion. Customer Support will be available to answer any questions that you may have about these changes.
In a rough translation, this could, together with the blog post on 13-15 year olds entering SL be taken to read, OK, we’ve heard the pleas from you educators, and we’re going to provide a means for youngsters to join you on the main grid by limiting them to your private sims…but we’re going to foist a drastic price increase on you at short notice for those sims because or forcing you to take a product we’ve already severely capped in terms of usage, really guys, we don’t want you or your kids here.”
As has been pointed out in many of the (unanswered) replies to this post, this is a double hit from LL that is going to trigger a further migration away from the platform to other environs: not only does it hit educational institutions, but it takes out non-profits as well. what’s more, both types of institution generally set their budgets well ahead of time…and what amounts to a tad less than three-month warning of a massive price hike means that many are likely to be caught out by this move.
It’s a shame this move has been announced as it really smacks of nothing less that giving with the left hand and taking away with the right…
Inara Pey: Living in a Modemworld 