Linden Lab, for a long period, offered OpenSpace regions to users: regions which were purchased in packs of 4, with all 4 running on a single CPU core, intended to be placed next to an existing region to create the effect of larger size. The fee for 4 OpenSpaces was identical to that for a single private region. However, in March 2008, this rule was modified to permit OpenSpaces to be bought individually and placed elsewhere, as well as increasing the prim load each one could handle. OpenSpaces were made available for a US$415 downpayment plus a US$75 monthly fee. (The equivalent monthly fee on Mainland would buy one quarter of a region, with the same number of prims, in less space.) This deal was so attractive that it quickly redefined land usage on the grid, with many resident land dealers purchasing or converting existing land to OpenSpaces; residents also began to use OpenSpaces for multiple purposes, including housing, for which they appeared to run well, but which were against the published guidelines for usage of the product.

In October 2008 Linden Lab announced that the OpenSpaces being used for this purpose were being misused; there was in fact no technical throttle limiting their usage, so the apparent "running well" had been achieved by taking resources from the OpenSpaces on the same CPU core. This was the first time that LL had commented on the issue. No apparent attempt had been made to resolve the technical problems being caused by the popularity of the product. Linden Lab raised the monthly fee per OpenSpace to US$125, the same cost as half a region; added an avatar limit of 20; and renamed it to Homestead. This reversed the perceived benefits of owning such a sim (the fee equivalent, half a region, would have double the space but twice as many prims, and no avatar or script limits).

A week after the initial announcement, and following a widespread revolt, Linden Labs also stated its intention to add technical limits, though these are yet to be announced. A revised Openspace product, with far fewer prims, a no-residency rule, and costing the same monthly amount, was announced; in the opinion of some owners, this reversed the previous value situation, offering four times the space of the mainland equivalent but with a significant prim reduction (the new OpenSpaces had only the prim allowance of 1/20 of a region) and a 10 avatar limit. The LL forums indicate that many regions are set to close in January 2009 and it is likely LL will see a considerable shrinkage in land, income, and avatar use over the coming quarter.

This new policy has resulted in protests in welcome areas, help islands, and other official Linden regions, at Linden Lab staff 'office hours' events, and the formation of advocacy groups. Some users were banned by Linden Lab for using the protests to block new avatars from logging in via the help islands. The primary protest group[citation needed], +SOS+ (Save our OpenSpaces) has organized as a 501c3 Non-Profit in Iowa as The Grid Representation Foundation to operate as an advocate for avatar rights and to pursue possible legal remedies for what is seen by group members as illegal action in the Openspace policy.