I wondered how long can it go on like this, until it really brings SL's sheer existence into doubt. It seems LL did finally understand that they have to do something to work against the trend. And they did at least something - but it is actually not so simple. To quote LL itself:
In November, we lowered the set-up fees for land purchases by 40%. Today, we’re introducing a limited-time offer that will make land even cheaper by allowing you to lower your monthly tier payments (aka land maintenance fees).
From today until October 4th, 2016, you can “buy-down” your Full Islands and/or Homesteads to the grandfathered maintenance rates. By paying a one-time fee up front, you’ll be entitled to lower tier rates on your land for as long as you hold it (and remember, we now also allow transferring grandfathered land).
The pricing for this offer is as follows:
Full Island:
One-time buy-down fee: $600
Grandfathered maintenance fee: $195/month (regularly $295/month)
Homestead:
One-time buy-down fee: $180
Grandfathered maintenance fee: $95/month (regularly $125/month)
Note: This offer cannot be combined with our Education and Non-Profit discount program, and cannot be applied toSkill Gaming Regions.
If you plan to hold onto your land for longer than 6 months, this is a great deal for you!
To take advantage of this offer, you’ll need to submit a Support Case using the Land & Region -> Region Buy Down case type. In that case you can provide us with the names of the regions you would like to buy down, and we will assess the appropriate buy-down fee per region.
Source: Second Life Blog
So this means you pay a one-time fee (the so-called buy-down the post is talking about). Then, after 6 months holding your sim and paying the reduced (Grandfathered) fees, you are breaking even and save money compared to the original pricing.
I think this is a start, its not a game-changer, since the prices for sims are still ridiculously high, but its at least some kind of reaction. We will see how the situation develops in the next months.
