Chic at Ebbe's Place

Linden Lab (tm) announced yesterday that a new TOS was out.

They didn't actually need to announce that for many folks. If you tried to log onto the grid, the Marketplace, your account OR the forums you were faced with some version of the read and click through paradigm.

I opted NOT to OK before reading thoroughly (see, some of us learn). Others apparently were of the "I don't care what they want, I am OKing" mind. I read the opinions on the predominant blogs. The general consensus was that it was a much ado about nothing event. The TOS wasn't any WORSE (an Oh so good thing) but also not really any better.

Now a few folks are in the "oh so grateful you fixed this camp". I am guessing they read the announcement and not the many screens of Terms of Service text and supporting documents.

IN MY MIND (absolutely no inside info) this has always been about The New World. Desura had been purchased and devs had left (that I actually knew but didn't know that it was a Linden platform they headed for  :D) and the August TOS came into being.

The biggest oddity when the August TOS section 2.3 came into the light was that while there were plenty of "second tier content creators" making a huge fuss, the top designers were completely quiet. The only comment I saw from any of them (and I really was looking) was from Cory Edo on Strawberry Signh's blog who said that this was the best platform for her and she was sticking with it.

Now let's rewind time a bit for the older generation. Remember all the naked photos of content creators during the copybot  scandal of 2006-08? I would rather be bare than wear stolen good?  The posters were very prominent when I came into the world. I saw this one daily as I camped for hair at Calla.

If designers were so very up in arms about the ability for people being able to copy their goods and make profits from them -- why were the not upset about giving Linden Lab right to use, sell, and profit from their work with no monetary remuneration OR even attribution?
 

For me, it meant that the top tier designers already knew the bottom line. They had been let in on the secret and were under a NDA, so mum was indeed the word. It was the only thing that made sense to me then -- and it still does now.

I noted that a few designers slowed their releases remarkably, putting out small items and making the mandatory group gift now and then.  Others went on as business as usual.

So now it seems most of us know more (I'm not saying all) of the story. I can live with that.

I read through the lengthy legalese TOS this morning. I didn't find anything that seemed reassuring. I didn't find anything that seemed worse. Hence, I clicked the box and journeyed on into the world.