Happy New Year to one and all. Let this be a good year and may good triumph over evil in whatever form it may take.
For the last number of years or so, we've all seen those commercials for something called "Video Professor." You know, get a "free" CD-ROM instructional video that teaches you anything and everything you wanted to know about 80 or so computer programs, or how to buy and sell on eBay. The pitch -- once you try one of their products, you'll want to keep buying more stuff.
I've been wondering what the catch could be? Then I did a simple google and it became obvious: It's set up like one of those book or CD clubs. Every month, you're offered a new lesson. If you don't mail that card back in time saying you don't want it, you get dinged on your pre-authorized credit card -- up to $80 US a month. Yes, the continuity sales model or what we call "negative option billing."
Certainly, they're entitled to run their business that way -- it's not illegal. But has it turned me off from even wanting to try it? You bet it has. No question, some people actually get something out of negative option billing -- I have a friend who actually wanted to get children's educational books that her kid benefited from, until her then husband cancelled the subscription without informing her he'd done so. You can imagine how the kid felt when he found out daddy took away his books.
But it should be stated up front in bold, not in fine print, what the terms and conditions are. There's no such thing as a free home alarm (there's usually a four year minimum contract), any more than there is a "free" instructional video -- it doesn't cost all that much to mail a CD-ROM, just oversize postage and it costs, what, 50 cents to burn a disk?
It's the old, I wish I'd thought of that ... so yeah, I respect the guy for that. But there's no such thing as a free lunch.
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