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The following article was initially published Sept 8, 2013 and is re-published here as an important reference pertaining to another article.
A change to Second Life TOS has been published without notice to users. We were made aware of this by a third-party source, it has been verified, and are thus notifying our members:
2.3 You grant Linden Lab certain licenses to your User Content.
[..]you agree to grant to Linden Lab, the non-exclusive, unrestricted, unconditional, unlimited, worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, and cost-free right and license to use, copy, record, distribute, reproduce, disclose, sell, re-sell, sublicense (through multiple levels), modify, display, publicly perform, transmit, publish, broadcast, translate, make derivative works of, and otherwise exploit in any manner whatsoever, all or any portion of your User Content (and derivative works thereof), for any purpose whatsoever in all formats, on or through any media, software, formula, or medium now known or hereafter developed, and with any technology or devices now known or hereafter developed, and to advertise, market, and promote the same. You agree that the license includes the right to copy, analyze and use any of your Content as Linden Lab may deem necessary or desirable for purposes of debugging, testing, or providing support or development services in connection with the Service and future improvements to the Service.[..]
In other words, if you use or create something on Second Life, you grant full and irrevocable rights to do with it whatever they want, including "re-sell" the item.
This potentially-exploitative stipulation does not exist on most other grids.
To be totally fair, an Elf Clan member points out:
"That "standard issue" clause is basically legalese for "we cannot be sued for anything that happens or is done with your content. It's a paranoid term created by lawyers who try to create terms broad enough that a user looking to rip off the company through frivolous litigation will not be able to do so, no matter what hare-brained legal theory they try. It was sparked by lawsuits such as a user uploading a photo to a website in a fashion where it would be publically visible, and then suing the website for copyright infringement because they "copied" the photo in the process of making it publicly visible."
I can understand the concept, but surely there are wiser and less potentially-explosive ways to word their TOS and still protect the company.
In response to this policy, a website that provides textures free of charge and which has been used extensively by VR creators, has recently announced that their textures may no longer be used on Second Life specifically (according to their FAQ and licensing, this does not apply to Inworldz). That license decision was prompted directly by the LL TOS change:
"On the 15th of August 2013, Linden Lab changed their Terms of Use without any announcement or warning... As you can see from the highlighted portions, as soon as you upload any content to Second Life you give Linden Lab unlimited and irrevocable rights to do whatever they want with your work." Reference here.
If anyone is a creator on SL-- just thought you should be aware of this policy change. It took place August 15, 2013, in case you missed the Linden Lab non-announcement.
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