The addition to my telephone bill came weeks after I saw an advertisement on the Internet and took a chance at winning a fancy cellphone. I assumed the manufacturer or distributor were behind it, but I was wrong.
That led to my second mistake. I did not check carefully for pricing details. They were set out in the fine print at the bottom of the ad, and in abbreviated form in a follow-up text message, which you would have to scroll to the bottom to read in full.
It turned out I was billed $2 per message, three to four times a week, whether I replied to a trivia question or not. Had I known, I would have replied "STOP" sooner, or have not entered.
Several readers have written to say they were similarly surprised by charges. Some had dealt with the same game provider, some with others. Some had no recollection of signing up. Some felt tricked, some merely foolish. Some got refunds from their telephone company.
The marketer of my contest – TMG Co. of Amsterdam – informs me I actually attempted to register four times. How stupid was that?
Maybe my readers and I are all exceptionally gullible, impatient or green in the use of cellphones. But, after testing the sign-up procedure for another TMG contest, this one for an Apple laptop computer, I have a suggestion:
USE LARGER TYPE.
President Hans de Back pointed out in an interview: "We are not using the word free." In a lengthy reply to questions, the company said: "Unfortunately, we cannot force someone to read the information we provide; however, we can only hope that when the user decides to participate and subscribe, he/she has educated him/herself fully on the consequences of the service."
That is all true freecreditscore bad credit payday loans. But if it’s possible for even a minority of customers to miss the pricing information, maybe it’s not prominent enough.
The online advertisement for the contest for the laptop computer has large moving text at the top. Images of the computer float in and out of view. The small print on the bottom is in a light colour on a dark background. The $2 price appears at the far right, and within the large block of text after 118 words. It would not be visible on some computer screens without scrolling down.
From what I have seen and what the company says, TMG complies with rules set down by the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association. But those standards do not specify the size or positioning of text used when disclosing prices.
TMG, and spokespersons for Bell Mobility, Rogers, Fido and Telus insist they receive relatively few complaints about billings for premium message servives. Unsolicited advertising is a far greater source of complaints, says Jim Johannsson of Telus.
At my request, Kenneth Hardy, a professor of marketing at the Richard Ivey School of Business in London, Ont., looked at TMG’s ad. He found the manner for disclosing the price was lacking.
"I think it is essentially a common sense standard that, if there is a charge, that it be prominent enough that a customer realizes there is a charge, and that it hinges on the number of messages that are sent. The (secret to) long-term success of marketing enterprises is to be completely forthcoming, and have satisfied users."
James Daw, CFP, appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. He can be reached at jdaw@thestar.ca
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