Goodbye XStreet®

It’s no secret that I’ve never been impressed with the way Linden Lab® has managed Second Life® and XStreet®. The inability to function or market effectively has always been an issue and Linden Lab® never seems to address the concerns of the residents or merchants. Most recently, changes to the way fees are imposed in XStreet® and a survey sent to select merchants are prime examples of how they do not communicate effectively with those that have most at stake. But I’m not going to get into that; you can read the forums to find out how that is progressing.

What I am going to talk about is why Linden Lab® doesn’t listen and don’t seem to care. How they go about business and what they are attempting to accomplish is probably more of a mystery. They certainly don’t seem to operate the way most of us think a business would.

As I have said previously, I think their prime objective is to increase the value of Second Life® and now XStreet® to a point where they would realize a sizable profit upon the sale of both. I think this would explain why they ignore some things and concentrate on others. Most of what they do is to add new features without addressing problem areas in an attempt to make this world more attractive to potential buyers.


Why would they ignore existing problems? Quite frankly, I feel that they don’t really care about how we conduct our in world business and whether or not we are able to be successful at it. By us profiting, doesn’t necessarily make them profitable. As long as concurrency remains where it is, the in world problems appear to the outside as having little effect. Unless population drastically changed, which it is unlikely to do in the near future, the Lab sees no urgency in dealing with our issues.

The same holds true in XStreet®. While there is quite an uproar, it’s not likely to affect any major Linden Lab® decisions. There’s an old saying that any advertising is good advertising and I feel the Lab considers this to be true with the forums as well. With the high number of posts and participants, it appears to the uninformed that the forums are in high use regardless of what is said in them. The fact that merchants are voicing opinions leads well to potential investors even if a lot of the comments are negative. Negative comments would only be seen adversely if concurrency was dropping. But it is unlikely to either in world or XStreet® as seldom do groups leave here en masse. Unfortunately, some will go and others will come.

In addition, the business of large corporations bodes well for a potential sale. It’s no secret that Linden Lab® has sought these types of businesses and caters not only to their attraction but to those in world that could be considered large as well. The participation of these businesses is attractive to buyers who see more interest in large sums being contributed by these groups than by the smaller amounts contributed by merchants and residents.

The recent fee changes and those proposed in the survey support this theory as only those with sustainable business will be able to operate, at least profitably in the confines of XStreet®. The smaller merchants will be forced out of being able to compete effectively as they have been in world.

Linden Lab® caters to these types of businesses. They give special consideration and opportunities to them particularly with notices on the welcome screen and in mass emails that have been sent by the Lab to merchants and/or residents.

I don’t want to deny Linden Lab® the opportunity to do business and realize a profit. Although they have said this is a world imagined and created by the residents, it was and is not owned by the residents. If they simply set or changed their fee structure, they could do so with less criticism. What gets most people is that they explain their increases and changes by saying it’s what the residents/merchants want. It seldom is. They take a small sampling from select groups or individuals and claim it’s the voice of the majority, when in fact it is the voice of the minority. They can put out surveys and other forms of opinion getters, but unless there is an independent tally, we never know for sure if the results are as they say.

Satisfied customers and trust are keys to most business, in world and out. Unfortunately Linden Lab® can skate around that trust as they deal in a multitude of languages, cultures and countries and an organized opposition would not withstand. If they acted like a real life business, they might care a bit more and not run a dictatorship like they do now.

Unfortunately, whether you believe Second Life® will die, it won’t happen soon. For the many different reasons people come here, they will stay. Some won’t and they will be missed by those who knew them, but to most, it will make little difference.

As for as myself, I’ve been struggling with that decision for the past year. The changes to the XStreet® forums have left me to not participate in them. I refuse to and it’s a personal decision. I’ve removed my free items from Xstreet® and if the proposed changes occur, I’ll delist and not participate in XStreet at all. This predicated by the fact that where XStreet® once contribute about 10% of my total sales, they have dwindled to almost nothing since the take over by Linden Lab®.

As far as Second Life®, I’m still pondering that and keeping a watchful eye on what happens in the coming months. I like what I’ve accomplished in Second Life® but as they continue to make it more difficult to operate, market and compete, a decision about my future will be imminent. I know there are people who have and will call for boycotts or similar actions or those that feel their removal of items will make a point. Unfortunately it may make a point but has little effect on Linden Lab® decision making. This community is too diverse to have a unified effective voice. We need to make our own decisions that effect our operations and lives here and stand by them. We don’t need confirmation.