Your analogy about the vacuum cleaner and the brick and mortar store is flawed. You are trying to compare "apples and oranges" with it. You can't use a flawed analogy to justify your opinion. You say it looks as if I am defending them. No, I am pointing out that people like you totally ignore the consumer's responsibility. BTW...I was waiting for someone to turn the criticism towards me...LOL...Now, make me the villan. ROFL No, customers don't have to read every little thing jammed on a web page, but the TOS is there for a reason. Try to read at least that and you will see the clause about charges. Your analogy of the rape victim tells me why you are stuck on these points, but I guess we can differ. BTW...I just got home from one of the stores where I sell products. I am running a special this weekend...$1.00 off all jar goods. I have 4-1 foot x 1 foot signs within an area no larger than 100 square feet (10 x 10 - the size of a very small room) that say in the largest letters I could fit "$1.00 OFF all jar goods". In the two hours I was there, I had 3 people return jars to the shelf after telling the cashier that the sign said they were $1.00. Now, tell me people read?...Or I guess I was trying to get over on them, huh? Hehehehe Jim
well, imho it's just a simple matter of business ethics. sure consumers should 'read the fine print' and know what they're getting but the fact of the matter is: they think they're getting one thing, but they're buying another the sellers know that their buyers don't know exactly what they're getting..maybe that's why it's in like 6px font size you can say the consumers are stupid all you want but it doesn't change it.
No one said consumers are stupid; they are just poor consumers who don't do their due diligence and then blame the seller. I guess I got interested in this thread and the other one I mentioned from another forum because it sounds like typical affiliate marketers' garbage...always blame someone else..take no responsibility whatsoever. Jim
Most offers state 9.99 per month in the top of the ad not just in the fine print (there are a few that don't). I think promoting as completely free is wrong. but again as with anything buyer should read everything.
Ringtones and ethics is a sketchy subject. As Shoe said before, certain individuals are giving ringtones a bad name by promoting them as free. I wrote a little more on this topic in my most recent blog post.
Hi SUP3RNOVA, Good blog post. So, perhaps the problem does not lie so much with the ringtone companies as much as it lies with the scammy affiliates who market them as "free". I could see...although I always read the company's website even after going there from an affiliate and do my due diligence before I buy...scammy affiliates preselling them well as "free", and unsuspecting buyers signing up based on the affiliate recommendation. Jim