See, the thing here isn't that you have people saying "We're not /special/ enough" it's that they're saying "So, ah, what am I paying for?" If, for them, the subdomain was a major reason to pay, that reason no longer motivates them to pay, because they can get it for free.

In that case, they can let their paid account lapse. If the URL was the main reason they got the paid account, then there's not much LJ can give them in recompense anyway. They were paying for the URL, something that now, by necessity, has to be given away. Boohoo, no one knew this was gonna happen. Suck it up and don't renew the paid account.

But, then, I'm really practical about that sort of thing.

(I use the picture space and the icons, with the occasional poll thrown in for good measure.)