SLUniverse Forums

ChatNoir Moonsoo

...for buyers of OpenSpaces, yet EstateOwner retains ownership of the sim (according to one Estate Owner). "Not just Estate Manager rights to the region you buy".

I'm not exactly a noob in the sim-business, but I don't see how that could be done, based on experience, knowledge base articles and talks with Lindens. Or am I missing something and not connecting a crucial dot?

After reading the chat-log of a conversation with this estate owner I'm pretty sure that most of the claims are of a semantic nature, not factual, but still, one wonders...

Aki Shichiroji

My openspace is like that, as is Joshua's.

The deal is that there are three major roles that are associated with regions - Billing account, Estate Owner, Estate Manager.

Manager is limited to not being able to upload textures and maps if I recall correctly... Owner can do everything. Billing account is simply the account who's paying for it all. Any individual can be made an Estate Owner by request of the paying account, I think...?

Seems like that rule about openspace owners needing to own a full region already is slowly being bent more and more often through that loophole.

EDIT: That's what your title sounds like it's advertising to me, at least.

__________________

Also See: Kitheres Industries (scifi avs) | Kitheres and Organica Updates | LJ

ChatNoir Moonsoo

Yes, I realized too late that the subject line can be read as an ad.


So to add confusion not only to the rules but to vocabulary too: the real owner is the billing account, not the estate owner?

I'm asking because of the knowledge base articles I've seen so far being the estate owner means that you also get to control whether the sim "goes under" or is being sold.

If I get you get right it would lead to this situation:
- estate owner fails to pay to billing account,
- estate owner sells sim to someone and gets the money (in-world),
- billing account is charged with transfer fee and ongoing maintenance fees,
- the new estate owner has no idea what's going on behind teh curtains,
- billing account finally decides to "sink the sim" and new estate owner loses the sim.

Sounds like a recipe for scams.

Fade Languish

As far as I know there's only two ways to sell estate land. Either, they would sell you the sim via the inworld land tools, your name would appear as the owner in about land, you would have the functionality of an owner. Actual ownership is still retained by the person who bought the island from LL. Unlike mainland, the billing doesn't switch to you when you buy it. You're correct when you say, the real owner is the person LL bills.

So yes, you could put money down, pay for the sim, and they could pull the rug out any time. It all works on trust and reputation.

The only other way is a direct user to user sale of the sim, with the money paid externally, and the currrent owner asking the Lindens to transfer ownership. Once again, that also works on trust, there's no LL mechanism in place to assure that transaction.

Unless they've changed something since I was an island owner, don't think they have. I assume open spaces are the same. From what you've posted, it sounds a little like they're setting out to confuse.

WarKirby Magojiro

Actually, I'm pretty sure there is. They recently added some sort of escrow service that allows the transfer of an estate to go through them, and ensure a fair deal. I think they charge a fee for doing that.

__________________

Fade Languish

Really? That's a good thing if so, it was a bit silly. It wasn't available when I sold mine, not that I needed it in my case.

Khamon

Having to own one type of estate sim in order to purchase another type of estate sim is a stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid policy.

__________________
"They're trying to make corporations believe that SL is not telecomutting's retarded, paraplegic stepchild, but is in fact an excellent way to do business online." - Penny Patton

ChatNoir Moonsoo

Not an escrow service, WarKirby.

Seller opens ticket informing LL about the sale (region, estate, buyer, agreed price).

Seller gives the ticket number to Buyer. Buyer opens own ticket referencing Seller's ticket and stating the above points.

When both tickets state the same facts, LL will bill Buyer and credit Seller with stated price, either in US$ or L$.

So far I have not been charged a fee for that (on the Buyer side).

I don't do sim-deals outside that venue anymore. A Seller insisting on for example advance in-world payment instead of going through this mechanism is not quite kosher imo.