Linden Lab Partially Reverses Gacha Ban, New Gachas Must Not Be Transferable

 

Linden Lab is changing it's policy on gachas. They're allowed again, but ...

Many residents will remember gachas, the popular items that were sold on machines dispensing one of a number of items at random and people buying them up, often to get rare items that could be traded or sold for quite a bit of cash. There were events based around them such as the twice a year Gacha Guild, and there were groups dedicated to trading and selling gachas. But as popular as they were, they also had plenty of critics, people complaining they had an addictive nature. And in August 2021, to the delight of their critics and to the shock and dismay of their fans, Linden Lab announced they were banning gachas "due to a changing regulatory climate."

On Tuesday October 10, Linden Lab announced they had updated their policy, saying they were lifting the "general prohibition" on them. But, there was a catch. People can set up gacha machines that gave out items like they did before the ban, BUT, unlike the goods before the ban, they can not be transferable. New gacha items can not be resold. 

In 2021, we implemented a general prohibition on gachas to align with global regulatory concerns. Starting October 7, 2024, we are lifting this prohibition. Residents can once again engage in gacha-based sales, but with a key new rule: gacha items, including the boxes or containers they come in, must not be transferable. This means that once you purchase a gacha item, it is yours and cannot be passed on to other users.

Linden Lab would go on to say breedables and games of skill were unaffected by this policy change, the latter as long as the prize was not transferable. They would also post an entry on the Second Life Wiki about the change (link). In the FAQ, they would state the reason they were doing a partial reversal was because "he latest changes in the legal climate related to gachas and loot boxes have given us an opportunity to lessen the formerly more restrictive policy."

In the forums, reaction was mixed.  Some were happy to have Gachas coming back. Others felt this was a disappointment, that allowing gachas back but not transferable was like allowing trading cards but banning the ability to trade them. And others felt any gacha was bad, transferable or not, as they were still addictive. One interesting comment was that this partial reversal of the ban "significantly harms the secondary resale economy."

So how does this affect the machines that resemble gachas but show what item is up for sale next, and the stores selling old gacha items. People in SL chat and the forums have been telling yours truly that this new policy doesn't affect them and they can continue as they have been, that the policies affect only gacha items created after the ban lift. 

To read the Lab's announcement in full, Click Here. 

Bixyl Shuftan

Second Life Land Area Rises to 25,555 Sims, Private Sim Sales Stopped Temporarily

 

When Linden Lab announced last May that they were could no longer guarantee a new sim to everyone who wanted to buy one, it was obvious the amount of private land areas was going up. It was just a question of how much. On January 3, Tyche Shepherd announced just how much it had. The total number of sims had increased from 24,740 to 25,555, an increase of 3.3%. For private sims, the rate of growth was a little short of twice that. They grew in number from 16,105 to 17,024, an increase of 919 or 5.7%.

Checking Tyche's chart, April and May saw huge increases in private sims compared to typical changes, with 176 in the week of April 19, 192 in the week of April 26, a huge growth of 352 on the week of May 3, and 268 on the week of May 17. But this period also saw the greatest drop, a decline of 179 on the week of May 10. These huge numbers were likely why Linden Lab made their announcement saying they couldn't guarantee a new sim for everyone. From the week of November 15 to the week of December 6, there was another period of growth averaging 80 a week. This followed the Lab's announcement that they had more sims available for sale, though still in limited numbers. But in late December, the Lab put further purchases of private sims on hold, at least for now, due to maintenance of it's land store. So the number of sims dropped in the last week.

So what will happen in 2021? Presumably once the bugs are worked out with Linden Lab's move to Amazon Cloud servers and anyone can get a private sim when they want, their numbers will continue to grow. But if glitches cause them to keep new land purchases limited, the increase will be small.

Source: Tyche Shepherd

Hat tip: Daniel Voyager 

Bixyl Shuftan

More on M and M's Sales Cancelation, Lindens Taken, by Linden Lab

A week ago, we wrote about Marcthur Goosson and his "M and M Creations" having two sales worth a toral of 42,000 Linden dollars being canceled by Linden Lab and the money taken. When he asked Linden Lab for an explanation, they didn't say very much other than the sales, made through M and M's Marketplace page were "done with Lindens acquired from another source." So he turned to us, and our readers, for answers.

Marxus Lefevre was the one person who answered through the Newser's article comment section, saying:

It does happen a lot actually... when I was working for an estate, which shall remain unnamed, LL would take regularly L$ from the estate owners account with above explanations. Due to close contacts with the support we eventually figured, that there were rental payments done with money acquired, i.e. from stolen credit cards etc., often from Russian or Arabian accounts. If the money was stolen from another account, which happens to often sadly too, LL would return the money to the person it was stolen from, independent of the purchases made through the offenders. I always thought it was the right thing to do though, but I understand, that it comes disturbing to Marcthur or anyone who's not aware of these things.

On the Friends of Second Life Facebook page, there were more comments. While there were accusations of "shady business practices," others confirmed Marxus' story. " This has been done for years and even on almost on daily basis. It relates to their procedure on how to handle stolen accounts. And perfectly legal. Credit card comp, banks etc all do the same by reverting payments when accounts stolen. ... This a normal buisness practice and nothing shady." "it's just a nice way of saying 'stolen lindens'."

So why didn't Linden Lab just up and say that they were returning stolen money to it's owner instead of giving vague and cryptic explanations? The only responses I got were from the Facebook chatter, "They just can't give more details than (they) did due to privacy right issues of account holder. ... by law they can't."

I don't know where to look to confirm this explanation. But if this is true, it seems this isn't simply Linden clumsiness at work, but also the law. Still, couldn't the Lab find some way to give a better explanation to a confused content creator trying to make a few dollars only to find his sales canceled and the money taken? There is also to consider that if dealing with stolen cash is a frequent problem, Linden Lab may be naturally reluctant to talk about it. In any event, this seems to be the best explanation there is for Marcthur's missing money.

Bixyl Shuftan

Merchant's Sales Canceled, Lindens Taken, by Linden Lab

Longtime readers may remember "M and M Creations," run by Marcthur Goosson. For years, he has been making quality items for sale, such as his cottages. But he recently came to the Newser after an incident that concerned the sale of some of his cottages.

Besides his inworld store at the Isle of Paradise, M and M also has a Marketplace page. Sales there were routine until December 30 when Marcthur discovered the Lindens had taken away 11,000 Linden dollars from his account, "without any warning or explanation." A few days later on January 4, he found 31,000 Linden dollars were gone. So he asked Linden Lab what was going on. They gave the following answer

Thank you for contacting support. We'll be happy to explain! We discovered the Marketplace purchase on your store was done with Lindens acquired from another source. The transaction was cancelled and the Lindens that were used were subsequently removed. We do apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Let us know if you need any further assistance!

Marcthur messaged them again for more details, and his money back. He was given this answer.

Unfortunately we are not privy to the specifics on which Marketplace purchase was actioned against, you do have our apologies! Our Accounts Review team discovered the issue and made a determination which resulted in the removal of the Lindens spent. For security purposes we cannot reveal the source of the Lindens or who spent the Lindens through your store.

Exactly what Linden Lab meant by "acquired from another source" they never stated. Marcthur wondered if it might be "fraud or stolen Linden dollars." But with the Lab not saying more, he could only turn to the Newser. Of the items involved in the canceled transactions, "I do not know cause they do not tell me. But given the amounts ans transactions in my overview it must be mainly cottages. So my cottages are in the wild now, and who-knows-what other items (I mainly sell full-permissions only). ... I am still in conversation with Linden Lab so they might compensate me or tell me more (or give me the LL finger)."

So far, Marcthur has yet to tell me of any additional information Linden Lab might have given him, or any of the lost 42,000 Linden dollars. If anyone knows of any similar incidents, please contact the Newser about it. In the meantime, M and M Creations remains open for business.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Isle%20of%20Paradise/217/158/22

Bixyl Shuftan

Black Friday Sales

In real life, "Black Friday," the day after Thanksgiving, has been the traditional start of the Christmas shopping season for decades. Although the term originally was used to describe the car and foot traffic to the stores, it has come to mean the common belief the day is when most stores have made enough money in the year to turn a profit. The event is commonly perceived as stores being packed with shoppers in search of bargains and "must buy" toys, sometimes shoving and even fighting one another. Beginning a couple years ago sales made during the day began to diminish due to retailers running sales earlier in the month and more shoppers spreading their time throughout December and November. But the day still is symbolic to shoppers.

Mylie Foxclaw discovered on seraphimsl.com, a website about sales and shopping in Second Life, a list of Second Life stores with "Black Friday" sales with items marked 30%, 40%, or 50 percent off. The list involves a variety of stores from bedroom, to dungeon, to weddings, to armor and swords, and more.

There is one other store holding Black Friday sales, Furry Fashion.  Until Midnight tonight SL time, there will be a 50 percent off sale in the main store, though only the main store, "Pay full price to get HALF YOUR MONEY BACK instantly. This Sale includes FF Main Store Vendors owned by Amethyst Crystal, Alexiel, Magnolia and Becky Doulton, Skyler Glasswing!"

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Furry/155/208/27

"Shop 'til you drop," or at least go Away From Keyboard.

Bixyl Shuftan

Steam Summer Sales

One of the more popular gaming places out on the internet, if not the most popular, is Steam. Developed by the Valve corporation, the makers of games such as Half Life, Team Fortress, and Portal, it's evolved over the years to become a digital distribution platform with client software that allows for ease in purchases and playing, in addtion to chatting with friends. To further encourage purchases, there's often a number of games on sale, occasionally one up for free. In her article today, Nydia has a few words about Steam, and the fun it's provided.

See Nydia's commentary in Other Grids and MMOs.

Declining Markets - Ozanimal Bunnies Dropping in Value

Besides writing news articles, Shellie Sands has been raising Ozanimal bunnies in Second Life. So how are things on the bunny ranch? Could be better. Shellie explains things in her story "Declining Markets."

Read the story in People.