New Membership plans

[LittleMe Jewell]

There have been rumors of new stuff coming.  The new plan is lower than regular Premium, lets you own Mainland (and gives you 512 sqm tier), L$150 stipend and 50 groups.

And NO MORE VAT for the price of memberships. 

And a reduction in Tier for 8k and up land sizes.

 

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by LittleMe Jewell

[shireena1]

WOOHOO!!!!!!!

I'm in when  my current m/ship expires!

(if not before)

Edited November 18, 2022 by shireena1
can we change plans early like we could with premium plus?

[LittleMe Jewell]

5 minutes ago, shireena1 said:

WOOHOO!!!!!!!

I'm in when  my current m/ship expires!

(if not before)

Yeah, I had thought about fully downgrading 2 of my Premiums back to Basic when they come due.  With this, I'll likely just downgrade them to Plus. 

[Sammy Huntsman]

8 minutes ago, LittleMe Jewell said:

Yeah, I had thought about fully downgrading 2 of my Premiums back to Basic when they come due.  With this, I'll likely just downgrade them to Plus. 

Just wait until the ones who argue how bad it is, come into this post. I for one, like that LL is starting to realize. They can offer more land sizes at cheaper prices. Which is freaking awesome. 

[TimKoul]

I actually like it.

[AzureWaves]

So LL can just absorb VAT, awesome! Just months after they announce taxes for US citizens... because it is "the law". LOL.

[Frankie Antonioni]

I have no plans to downgrade my membership. I prefer owning 1024 sq. meters of land, and the ability to belong to 70 groups. But I do think that Linden Lab should have mentioned my name in the community post.  I had an idea for something like that. I even made a post on the Jira. I now hope that more mainland will sell. There was some land near my store that was put up for auction. But no body made a bid. So the land is still abandoned. And its not just in the sim that my store is in. But in several others.

[Sammy Huntsman]

20 minutes ago, AzureWaves said:

So LL can just absorb VAT, awesome! Just months after they announce taxes for US citizens... because it is "the law". LOL.

Yes, cause you guys are not hit with exchange fees and stupid taxes together, which makes playing SL for Canadians Europeans, and people in the UK expensive. 

[Ingrid Ingersoll]

Pretty disapointing for mainland residents who own less than 8k plots. AKA pretty much everyone. I was hoping ll would finally consider adding more mid tier level options but nope. 

[Prokofy Neva]

1 hour ago, AzureWaves said:

So LL can just absorb VAT, awesome! Just months after they announce taxes for US citizens... because it is "the law". LOL.

I wonder what the justification of this is. Yes, it undoes the damage of VAT for years that Europeans have endured, making the playing field unlevel by contrast with Americans. So does this mean we can expect an "absorption" of state sales taxes in the future for Americans?

[Sammy Huntsman]

3 minutes ago, Ingrid Ingersoll said:

Pretty disapointing for mainland residents who own less than 8k plots. AKA pretty much everyone. I was hoping ll would finally consider adding more mid tier level options but nope. 

This is a lower tier cheaper version of plus, that is more affordable. What are you expecting out of it? 

[Prokofy Neva]

3 minutes ago, Ingrid Ingersoll said:

Pretty disapointing for mainland residents who own less than 8k plots. AKA pretty much everyone. I was hoping ll would finally consider adding more mid tier level options but nope. 

I wonder why they always insist on having that steep jump between levels, especially 4096 to 8192. 

[Sammy Huntsman]

1 minute ago, Prokofy Neva said:

I wonder what the justification of this is. Yes, it undoes the damage of VAT for years that Europeans have endured, making the playing field unlevel by contrast with Americans. So does this mean we can expect an "absorption" of state sales taxes in the future for Americans?

What about Sales taxes on Canadians? Why are Canadians always left out of this? 

[Ingrid Ingersoll]

1 minute ago, Prokofy Neva said:

I wonder why they always insist on having that steep jump between levels, especially 4096 to 8192. 

Yeah thats a big one

[Prokofy Neva]

1 minute ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

What about Sales taxes on Canadians? Why are Canadians always left out of this? 

They haven't been left out. You just included them. 

[Ingrid Ingersoll]

2 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

This is a lower tier cheaper version of plus, that is more affordable. What are you expecting out of 

More mid tier levels.

[Sammy Huntsman]

Just now, Prokofy Neva said:

They haven't been left out. You just included them. 

I mean being left out by LL. Our sales taxes are steep and we have to pay an exchange rate on top of that. It is pretty expensive to enjoy SL as a Canadian, especially when you upload Lindens and pay Premium. 

[Ingrid Ingersoll]

8 minutes ago, Sammy Huntsman said:

What about Sales taxes on Canadians? Why are Canadians always left out of this? 

I dont think canadians are charged sales tax . Someone correct me if im wrong. 

[Matt1318]

Pros

• 512sq for the lower budget players, hopefully increasing player time in world and commitment to the game.
• Reduced pricing for top tier players could mean a small increase in content development for players to explore around the SL world.

Cons

• None as overall its a positive improvement to the game.
• No benefit for 3072 - 7168 tier players.

Opinion

This is a great improvement to the game but I honestly do not think  it will have the effect they desire in the lower tier bracket of players. I think what is more likely to happen is players will drop from their Premium Subs down to Basic, saving a few dollars and also some just use their SL homes as a private wardrobe, 512sq or 1024sq is irrelevant to those select players, time will tell on that thought...

Then there is the top tier players; overall this is a benefit to them. They save money and also have the possibility of gaining a small increase to their land and level out to what they were paying before. The temptation to further increase their land grab will also help level out any money lost if players do drop from Premium to Basic memberships.

I imagine they decided not to offer any tier reductions for 3072 - 7168 because the profit increase on smaller parcels after 2048(from memberships) VS time customer service spends assisting these players would be a waste of time initially, hopefully this is something they decide to remedy quickly. It would be a smart play to add it in their next quarter to keep the money rolling in to make them look good on paper.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Matt1318

[Prokofy Neva]

The steep tier jump is always a drag. Let's say suddenly you have to make an emergency purchase to "save the view". Or suddenly, a tier donor pulls out. And you are forced to add this awkward amount.

So now I can see that the rate per square meter in that situation is nearly the same between the two accounts, figured in this way.

The stipend for a month if at the rate of $4 US per 1000 then is US $8 - in NYS the sales tax makes the monthly premium $13.05, minus the stipend, that's 

The stipend for a month with the new premium account is only $150, so that's US $2.40, which makes the monthly premium $6.51 with tax minus $2.40 or $4.11

So with the new rate of tier for $31 for 8192 between the two accounts (disregarding that one gives you 1024 and one gives you 512):

$5.05 plus $31 gives you 9216 for $36.05 at the rate of 0.00391 per meter.
$4.11 plus $31 gives you 8704 for $35.11  at the rate of 0.00400 per meter.

So if you only need 8192, you'd get the lower cost plus account if you have to put tier on another account like that, simply because it costs you less to shell out.
 

[Paul Hexem]

It's nice to see them adjusting the land pricing a bit... Although the fact that it's still the same exact predatory system but now with an extra steps, it's not the huge improvement it could be.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Paul Hexem

[diamond Marchant]

Hope this new tier pricing kicks in immediately

[Marianne Little]

I am not seeing a reason to change from Basic to Plus, and that is because I still pay VAT on tier, as I understand it. Who from Linden Labs are posting in General? I do not know who to poke.

So if LL find a loophole for VAT on tier, it is suddenly 25% less to pay for me.

Maybe that is possible, LL suddenly found a way around paying VAT for subscription on monthly payments. Perhaps land could be called a form for subscription too? 

It is VAT on tier that kills owning Mainland for me.

Tier in general is still very high, even if it is lowered for those who own a lot of land. Those who can pay from 31 US a month.

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Second Life Plus Membership Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) : Linden Lab (freshdesk.com)

A major reason to say no, is that a Linden Home for 512 m is not included. Maybe LL will change that.

Can I get a Linden Home with a Plus membership?

No, but...

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The low stipend is not enough to make a difference for me. It may for others, of course.

I can not see it is access to Premium sandboxes. Maybe LL just forgot to write it. It is very strange if not.

What benefits are included with a Plus membership?

Plus membership includes:

• The ability to own mainland, with 512m of land allowance included with the membership
• A weekly L$ stipend of L$150
• An increased number of groups (50, instead of 42 for Basic members)
• A wider selection of technical ticket types available through Customer Support for non-account and Billing issues

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I get a stipend that's worth 4,99 US, so I am paying LL one dollar per month. Roughly one dollar, for paying annually it is 5,50 per month. 

For that dollar, I get 8 more groups.

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If I am so low in finances that it is all I can afford, I may perhaps stop playing SL and read books instead. So much of my fun is about landscaping and interior decorating. 512 m without a house is living SL on a bare minimum. I know I can use only 1-5 Li furniture, 2 Li trees and get a house that is maybe 20-50 Li, but it is so restrictive.

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It is not for me, but will be for many others. ❤️Kudos to LL for listening and offering a low price alternative. They did not hit my needs this time.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Marianne Little
typo and adding a few words

[Alwin Alcott]

5 hours ago, AzureWaves said:

So LL can just absorb VAT, awesome! Just months after they announce taxes for US citizens... because it is "the law". LOL.

it's only for the memberships, so don't worry, the EU will still pay 20% more for land than you.

[Marianne Little]

Can @Reed Lindenanswer, I wonder:

It is VAT on tier? Can that be changed?

Will LL consider changing the benefits, so Plus can have a 512 m Linden Home? 

Will Plus have access to Premium sandboxes?