I belong to the sort of weak, relatively new players that are supposed to benefit from such a change. It is now much harder for stronger players to find my planets and attack me.

Am I pleased with this update? Not really.

I used to be spied upon regularly, constantly checking my spy reports and trying to guess whether and when I'll be attacked. Was that annoying? Sure, but it was part of the game, it was what made the game somewhat interesting for me on the defending side.

Since the Update, no one attacked me even once, not even the Pirates. It is as if the game has died. No one wants to play such a game where all they do is pile up resources and build another level every once in a while. Where's the challenge in that?