Comcast Now Charging Customers For Formerly Free Converter Boxes Chris Morran

(dmuth)

Not so long ago, Comcast customers who had to upgrade to digital set-top boxes were provided up to two free digital-television adapters so they wouldn’t gave to trash their old analog sets. Now, folks who still have those DTAs will have to pay $1.99/month for the privilege.

The charges have already started showing up for customers here in Philadelphia, in the shadow of the great Comcast tower (which kind of looks like a really tall thumb drive), and the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the monthly fee will be rolled out in other markets during the year.

With 23 million of the little black boxes spread around the country, that small-ish $2 fee adds up to a whopping $550 million a year extra in the Kabletown coffers.

The Comcast news comes in the wake of the Time Warner Cable roll-out of its $3.95/month modem-rental fee.

“The industry appears to be diversifying the ways in which it raises prices in an effort to minimize the sticker shock of a single headline price increase,” one analyst explains to the Inquirer. “Whether it is notionally a price increase for DTA converters or monthly broadband service, the real mission is to attempt to recover the soaring cost of video programming.”

Thanks to Margaret for the tip!

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Comcast Now Charging Customers For Formerly Free Converter Boxes

(dmuth)

Not so long ago, Comcast customers who had to upgrade to digital set-top boxes were provided up to two free digital-television adapters so they wouldn’t gave to trash their old analog sets. Now, folks who still have those DTAs will have to pay $1.99/month for the privilege.

The charges have already started showing up for customers here in Philadelphia, in the shadow of the great Comcast tower (which kind of looks like a really tall thumb drive), and the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the monthly fee will be rolled out in other markets during the year.

With 23 million of the little black boxes spread around the country, that small-ish $2 fee adds up to a whopping $550 million a year extra in the Kabletown coffers.

The Comcast news comes in the wake of the Time Warner Cable roll-out of its $3.95/month modem-rental fee.

“The industry appears to be diversifying the ways in which it raises prices in an effort to minimize the sticker shock of a single headline price increase,” one analyst explains to the Inquirer. “Whether it is notionally a price increase for DTA converters or monthly broadband service, the real mission is to attempt to recover the soaring cost of video programming.”

Thanks to Margaret for the tip!

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Comcast Now Charging Customers For Formerly Free Converter Boxes

(dmuth)

Not so long ago, Comcast customers who had to upgrade to digital set-top boxes were provided up to two free digital-television adapters so they wouldn’t gave to trash their old analog sets. Now, folks who still have those DTAs will have to pay $1.99/month for the privilege.

The charges have already started showing up for customers here in Philadelphia, in the shadow of the great Comcast tower (which kind of looks like a really tall thumb drive), and the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the monthly fee will be rolled out in other markets during the year.

With 23 million of the little black boxes spread around the country, that small-ish $2 fee adds up to a whopping $550 million a year extra in the Kabletown coffers.

The Comcast news comes in the wake of the Time Warner Cable roll-out of its $3.95/month modem-rental fee.

“The industry appears to be diversifying the ways in which it raises prices in an effort to minimize the sticker shock of a single headline price increase,” one analyst explains to the Inquirer. “Whether it is notionally a price increase for DTA converters or monthly broadband service, the real mission is to attempt to recover the soaring cost of video programming.”

Thanks to Margaret for the tip!

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

A Quest To Find The Best $1 Fast Food Burger

The winner.

You’re hungry. You’re stranded in suburbia. You only have a few bucks in your pocket. Which fast food dollar-menu burger should you choose? To find out, you’d need $6 (plus tax) and to drive all over town taste-testing the dollar offerings from every chain. Do you want cheese? Bacon? Flavor? Two patties? Fortunately, someone has done the legwork for you, without setting foot outside of his car.

It’s not just anyone, either: it’s our former colleague Phil Villarreal, putting his taste buds and about eight bucks on the line to keep us all informed. Phil’s lucky enough to live within driving distance of a wide variety of burgerterias: Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Burger King, Carl’s Jr., and Jack In The Box.

He declared Burger King’s Baconburger to be the winner. “I’m thinking whoever came up with the term “thick-cut” for the bacon inhaled some “natural smoke” beforehand,” he notes. Yet the tiny bit of bacon makes the burger a lot less crappy than the four alternatives. The Carl’s Jr. offering was shriveled and inadequate, with a meat patty that “vanishes inside a heat lamp-ravaged bun, like a hockey puck on an NHL broadcast.”

Incidentally, if Phil finished all of these burgers during the course of his taste test, his total intake would have been 1,664 calories and 79 grams of fat.

A Quest to Find the Best $1 Burger [Money Under 30]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

A Quest To Find The Best $1 Fast Food Burger

The winner.

You’re hungry. You’re stranded in suburbia. You only have a few bucks in your pocket. Which fast food dollar-menu burger should you choose? To find out, you’d need $6 (plus tax) and to drive all over town taste-testing the dollar offerings from every chain. Do you want cheese? Bacon? Flavor? Two patties? Fortunately, someone has done the legwork for you, without setting foot outside of his car.

It’s not just anyone, either: it’s our former colleague Phil Villarreal, putting his taste buds and about eight bucks on the line to keep us all informed. Phil’s lucky enough to live within driving distance of a wide variety of burgerterias: Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Burger King, Carl’s Jr., and Jack In The Box.

He declared Burger King’s Baconburger to be the winner. “I’m thinking whoever came up with the term “thick-cut” for the bacon inhaled some “natural smoke” beforehand,” he notes. Yet the tiny bit of bacon makes the burger a lot less crappy than the four alternatives. The Carl’s Jr. offering was shriveled and inadequate, with a meat patty that “vanishes inside a heat lamp-ravaged bun, like a hockey puck on an NHL broadcast.”

Incidentally, if Phil finished all of these burgers during the course of his taste test, his total intake would have been 1,664 calories and 79 grams of fat.

A Quest to Find the Best $1 Burger [Money Under 30]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

A Quest To Find The Best $1 Fast Food Burger Laura Northrup

The winner.

You’re hungry. You’re stranded in suburbia. You only have a few bucks in your pocket. Which fast food dollar-menu burger should you choose? To find out, you’d need $6 (plus tax) and to drive all over town taste-testing the dollar offerings from every chain. Do you want cheese? Bacon? Flavor? Two patties? Fortunately, someone has done the legwork for you, without setting foot outside of his car.

It’s not just anyone, either: it’s our former colleague Phil Villarreal, putting his taste buds and about eight bucks on the line to keep us all informed. Phil’s lucky enough to live within driving distance of a wide variety of burgerterias: Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Burger King, Carl’s Jr., and Jack In The Box.

He declared Burger King’s Baconburger to be the winner. “I’m thinking whoever came up with the term “thick-cut” for the bacon inhaled some “natural smoke” beforehand,” he notes. Yet the tiny bit of bacon makes the burger a lot less crappy than the four alternatives. The Carl’s Jr. offering was shriveled and inadequate, with a meat patty that “vanishes inside a heat lamp-ravaged bun, like a hockey puck on an NHL broadcast.”

Incidentally, if Phil finished all of these burgers during the course of his taste test, his total intake would have been 1,664 calories and 79 grams of fat.

A Quest to Find the Best $1 Burger [Money Under 30]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Automate Searching For Deals And Sales, Power-Shop In Your Sleep

the justified sinner

Bargain-hunting can be really fun. You can spend hours clipping coupons, searching online, and pawing through clearance racks to find the best deals. If you don’t enjoy that or don’t have time, though, there’s another way. You can decide what you want and what you’re willing to pay, and use automated tools that notify you when the item reaches that magic price.

There are a few types of savings tools: price alerts, e-mail filters, mobile phone/tablet apps, and browser extensions. Here’s how each one works: for detailed instructions on how to use them, we’re going to send you over to our estranged siblings over at Lifehacker, since they did the work to explain it all in detail.

Price alerts. Some merchants (Newegg, for example) let you set up your own price alerts right on their sites. Others require an outside tool: CamelCamelCamel can watch Amazon and Best Buy for you as well.

E-mail filters. Set up a special e-mail account or filter and folders for newsletters for your favorite retailers, and then set a filter to forward them on to your main address or otherwise alert you when the item you want hits your desired price.

Browser extensions. Lifehacker recommends Invisible Hand for the ultimate in automated and lazy deal-hunting.

Store apps. Hide them in a folder and pull them up when you walk in the door to see whether there are any good mobile-only coupons.

How to Automate Your Discounts and Always Get the Best Price [Lifehacker] (Thanks, Max!)

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

CES Kicks CNET To Curb, Gives “Best Of Show” Award To Dish’s Hopper DVR

Dish can now remove the asterisk.

The fallout over CBS’ idiotic decision to forbid CNET staffers from bestowing an award on Dish Network’s ad-skipping Hopper DVR continues to rain down on, with the folks behind the Consumer Electronics Show not only deciding to give Dish the award, but also ditching CNET as the producer of the annual awards.

For those of you coming into this story late, back in January, the CNET editors had already selected the newest iteration of the Hopper to win its Best Of CES award at the mammoth, international electronics convention in Las Vegas.

But then, after the decision was made but before it was formally announced, CNET’s parent company CBS told CNET it could not give the award to the Hopper because CBS (along with the other broadcast networks) is currently in litigation regarding the version of the device currently on the market. So instead, the award went to another product, the Razer Edge, and CNET posted a disclosure on the nominees page explaining why the Hopper had been removed from consideration.

It soon became public knowledge that the Hopper was the rightful winner of the award. In the wake of all this news, a CNET reporter quit rather than be told what he could and couldn’t cover, and Dish just decided to give itself the award, turning lemons into marketing lemonade.

CBS has continued to stand by its ban on products involved in litigation with the network, recently telling CNET editors they could write about but not review a new update to Aereo, a start-up service that streams live broadcast TV over the Internet.

Then today, the folks at the International CES and the Consumer Electronics Association declared that the Hopper and the Razer Edge will share in the Best of Show award.

“The CNET editorial team identified the Hopper Sling as the most innovative product of the show, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, events and conferences for the CEA, which recently filed an amicus brief in support of Dish in its lawsuits with broadcasters. “The Hopper with Sling and the Razer Edge both represent the best of the exciting, innovative technology introduced at the 2013 CES. We are pleased to recognize both products as Best of Show.”

“We are shocked that the ‘Tiffany’ network which is known for its high journalistic standards would bar all its reporters from favorably describing classes of technology the network does not like,” said CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro. “We believe that the DISH Hopper DVR is fully covered by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios Inc. The simple fact is making television easier to watch is not against the law. It is simply pro-innovation and pro-consumer.”

And with that, the split between the Best of CES awards and CNET appears to be final.

CEA says it will soon be asking for proposals from other sponsors for its awards.

“CES has enjoyed a long and productive partnership with CNET and the Best of CES awards,” stated Chupka. “However, we are concerned the new review policy will have a negative impact on our brand should we continue the awards relationship as currently constructed.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Automate Searching For Deals And Sales, Power-Shop In Your Sleep Laura Northrup

the justified sinner

Bargain-hunting can be really fun. You can spend hours clipping coupons, searching online, and pawing through clearance racks to find the best deals. If you don’t enjoy that or don’t have time, though, there’s another way. You can decide what you want and what you’re willing to pay, and use automated tools that notify you when the item reaches that magic price.

There are a few types of savings tools: price alerts, e-mail filters, mobile phone/tablet apps, and browser extensions. Here’s how each one works: for detailed instructions on how to use them, we’re going to send you over to our estranged siblings over at Lifehacker, since they did the work to explain it all in detail.

Price alerts. Some merchants (Newegg, for example) let you set up your own price alerts right on their sites. Others require an outside tool: CamelCamelCamel can watch Amazon and Best Buy for you as well.

E-mail filters. Set up a special e-mail account or filter and folders for newsletters for your favorite retailers, and then set a filter to forward them on to your main address or otherwise alert you when the item you want hits your desired price.

Browser extensions. Lifehacker recommends Invisible Hand for the ultimate in automated and lazy deal-hunting.

Store apps. Hide them in a folder and pull them up when you walk in the door to see whether there are any good mobile-only coupons.

How to Automate Your Discounts and Always Get the Best Price [Lifehacker] (Thanks, Max!)

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

CES Kicks CNET To Curb, Gives “Best Of Show” Award To Dish’s Hopper DVR Chris Morran

Dish can now remove the asterisk.

The fallout over CBS’ idiotic decision to forbid CNET staffers from bestowing an award on Dish Network’s ad-skipping Hopper DVR continues to rain down on, with the folks behind the Consumer Electronics Show not only deciding to give Dish the award, but also ditching CNET as the producer of the annual awards.

For those of you coming into this story late, back in January, the CNET editors had already selected the newest iteration of the Hopper to win its Best Of CES award at the mammoth, international electronics convention in Las Vegas.

But then, after the decision was made but before it was formally announced, CNET’s parent company CBS told CNET it could not give the award to the Hopper because CBS (along with the other broadcast networks) is currently in litigation regarding the version of the device currently on the market. So instead, the award went to another product, the Razer Edge, and CNET posted a disclosure on the nominees page explaining why the Hopper had been removed from consideration.

It soon became public knowledge that the Hopper was the rightful winner of the award. In the wake of all this news, a CNET reporter quit rather than be told what he could and couldn’t cover, and Dish just decided to give itself the award, turning lemons into marketing lemonade.

CBS has continued to stand by its ban on products involved in litigation with the network, recently telling CNET editors they could write about but not review a new update to Aereo, a start-up service that streams live broadcast TV over the Internet.

Then today, the folks at the International CES and the Consumer Electronics Association declared that the Hopper and the Razer Edge will share in the Best of Show award.

“The CNET editorial team identified the Hopper Sling as the most innovative product of the show, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, events and conferences for the CEA, which recently filed an amicus brief in support of Dish in its lawsuits with broadcasters. “The Hopper with Sling and the Razer Edge both represent the best of the exciting, innovative technology introduced at the 2013 CES. We are pleased to recognize both products as Best of Show.”

“We are shocked that the ‘Tiffany’ network which is known for its high journalistic standards would bar all its reporters from favorably describing classes of technology the network does not like,” said CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro. “We believe that the DISH Hopper DVR is fully covered by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios Inc. The simple fact is making television easier to watch is not against the law. It is simply pro-innovation and pro-consumer.”

And with that, the split between the Best of CES awards and CNET appears to be final.

CEA says it will soon be asking for proposals from other sponsors for its awards.

“CES has enjoyed a long and productive partnership with CNET and the Best of CES awards,” stated Chupka. “However, we are concerned the new review policy will have a negative impact on our brand should we continue the awards relationship as currently constructed.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Automate Searching For Deals And Sales, Power-Shop In Your Sleep

the justified sinner

Bargain-hunting can be really fun. You can spend hours clipping coupons, searching online, and pawing through clearance racks to find the best deals. If you don’t enjoy that or don’t have time, though, there’s another way. You can decide what you want and what you’re willing to pay, and use automated tools that notify you when the item reaches that magic price.

There are a few types of savings tools: price alerts, e-mail filters, mobile phone/tablet apps, and browser extensions. Here’s how each one works: for detailed instructions on how to use them, we’re going to send you over to our estranged siblings over at Lifehacker, since they did the work to explain it all in detail.

Price alerts. Some merchants (Newegg, for example) let you set up your own price alerts right on their sites. Others require an outside tool: CamelCamelCamel can watch Amazon and Best Buy for you as well.

E-mail filters. Set up a special e-mail account or filter and folders for newsletters for your favorite retailers, and then set a filter to forward them on to your main address or otherwise alert you when the item you want hits your desired price.

Browser extensions. Lifehacker recommends Invisible Hand for the ultimate in automated and lazy deal-hunting.

Store apps. Hide them in a folder and pull them up when you walk in the door to see whether there are any good mobile-only coupons.

How to Automate Your Discounts and Always Get the Best Price [Lifehacker] (Thanks, Max!)

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

CES Kicks CNET To Curb, Gives “Best Of Show” Award To Dish’s Hopper DVR

Dish can now remove the asterisk.

The fallout over CBS’ idiotic decision to forbid CNET staffers from bestowing an award on Dish Network’s ad-skipping Hopper DVR continues to rain down on, with the folks behind the Consumer Electronics Show not only deciding to give Dish the award, but also ditching CNET as the producer of the annual awards.

For those of you coming into this story late, back in January, the CNET editors had already selected the newest iteration of the Hopper to win its Best Of CES award at the mammoth, international electronics convention in Las Vegas.

But then, after the decision was made but before it was formally announced, CNET’s parent company CBS told CNET it could not give the award to the Hopper because CBS (along with the other broadcast networks) is currently in litigation regarding the version of the device currently on the market. So instead, the award went to another product, the Razer Edge, and CNET posted a disclosure on the nominees page explaining why the Hopper had been removed from consideration.

It soon became public knowledge that the Hopper was the rightful winner of the award. In the wake of all this news, a CNET reporter quit rather than be told what he could and couldn’t cover, and Dish just decided to give itself the award, turning lemons into marketing lemonade.

CBS has continued to stand by its ban on products involved in litigation with the network, recently telling CNET editors they could write about but not review a new update to Aereo, a start-up service that streams live broadcast TV over the Internet.

Then today, the folks at the International CES and the Consumer Electronics Association declared that the Hopper and the Razer Edge will share in the Best of Show award.

“The CNET editorial team identified the Hopper Sling as the most innovative product of the show, and we couldn’t agree more,” said Karen Chupka, senior vice president, events and conferences for the CEA, which recently filed an amicus brief in support of Dish in its lawsuits with broadcasters. “The Hopper with Sling and the Razer Edge both represent the best of the exciting, innovative technology introduced at the 2013 CES. We are pleased to recognize both products as Best of Show.”

“We are shocked that the ‘Tiffany’ network which is known for its high journalistic standards would bar all its reporters from favorably describing classes of technology the network does not like,” said CEA President and CEO Gary Shapiro. “We believe that the DISH Hopper DVR is fully covered by the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios Inc. The simple fact is making television easier to watch is not against the law. It is simply pro-innovation and pro-consumer.”

And with that, the split between the Best of CES awards and CNET appears to be final.

CEA says it will soon be asking for proposals from other sponsors for its awards.

“CES has enjoyed a long and productive partnership with CNET and the Best of CES awards,” stated Chupka. “However, we are concerned the new review policy will have a negative impact on our brand should we continue the awards relationship as currently constructed.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Woman Sues California Pizza Kitchen For $5 Million, Shocked That Frozen Pizzas Could Be Unhealthy

(sallyvillarreal)

Sure, you could assume that because it’s illegal for restaurants in your state to use trans fats in the foods they serve, a frozen meal branded with the name of a restaurant chain wouldn’t have trans fats in it. You would be wrong, but you’re certainly free to make that assumption. That’s what a California woman who bought some California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizzas thought, though. Now she’s suing Nestle, the company that makes CPK frozen meals, for $5 million in a class action suit, intending to save us all from the hidden poisons that are actually disclosed on the back of the box.

Mom’s $5 Million Lawsuit Targets ‘Toxic’ Frozen Pizzas Sold Locally [Patch]

RELATED:

I Want My Trans Fats Back: Consumerist Readers Speak Out About Recipe Changes

There’s Actually A Settlement In Nutella ‘Health Food’ Class Action Lawsuit

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Woman Sues California Pizza Kitchen For $5 Million, Shocked That Frozen Pizzas Could Be Unhealthy Laura Northrup

(sallyvillarreal)

Sure, you could assume that because it’s illegal for restaurants in your state to use trans fats in the foods they serve, a frozen meal branded with the name of a restaurant chain wouldn’t have trans fats in it. You would be wrong, but you’re certainly free to make that assumption. That’s what a California woman who bought some California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizzas thought, though. Now she’s suing Nestle, the company that makes CPK frozen meals, for $5 million in a class action suit, intending to save us all from the hidden poisons that are actually disclosed on the back of the box.

Mom’s $5 Million Lawsuit Targets ‘Toxic’ Frozen Pizzas Sold Locally [Patch]

RELATED:

I Want My Trans Fats Back: Consumerist Readers Speak Out About Recipe Changes

There’s Actually A Settlement In Nutella ‘Health Food’ Class Action Lawsuit

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Woman Sues California Pizza Kitchen For $5 Million, Shocked That Frozen Pizzas Could Be Unhealthy

(sallyvillarreal)

Sure, you could assume that because it’s illegal for restaurants in your state to use trans fats in the foods they serve, a frozen meal branded with the name of a restaurant chain wouldn’t have trans fats in it. You would be wrong, but you’re certainly free to make that assumption. That’s what a California woman who bought some California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizzas thought, though. Now she’s suing Nestle, the company that makes CPK frozen meals, for $5 million in a class action suit, intending to save us all from the hidden poisons that are actually disclosed on the back of the box.

Mom’s $5 Million Lawsuit Targets ‘Toxic’ Frozen Pizzas Sold Locally [Patch]

RELATED:

I Want My Trans Fats Back: Consumerist Readers Speak Out About Recipe Changes

There’s Actually A Settlement In Nutella ‘Health Food’ Class Action Lawsuit

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Just What We Don’t Need — More Gift Cards! And This One’s From Facebook

(Facebook)

Say the word “gift card” around Consumerist HQ and hackles will raise at an alarming rate. Which is why we’re greeting the news of a new gift card offered by Facebook with what one might call, “extreme wariness and trepidation.” Building on the social network’s recent launch of Facebook Gifts, these cards will be able to hold balances for multiple retailers and are reusable.

Facebook announced the new service today on its blog, touting the card’s ability to hold balances for Jamba Juice, Olive Garden, Sephora and Target. Which means the possibility of gift card shenanigans with not just one retailer, but four!

Here’s how it will work: After picking a pal to send a gift to, you will select the retailer you want to use to gift your pal from Gift Cards & Digital, choose a dollar amount and pay for it. Your friend will get a notification right away and receive a physical gift card in the mail a few days later.

Any other gift card balances you receive will be added to your existing card, so at least you won’t have a pile of plastic sitting in a drawer just waiting to be forgotten. A feature we’ll admit some begrudging interest in is the ability to view the balances for each retailer on your phone or desktop Facebook apps, so at least there (maybe) won’t be any nasty surprises when you try to use it.

There are still a lot of specifics that are unclear as of now — for example, will the gift card automatically deduct a fee after not being used for a long period of time? And will disputes be handled by Facebook or the retailers directly?

We’ve reached out to Facebook with those questions and will keep you in the loop.

Introducing the Facebook Card, a New Type of Gift Card [Facebook]

by Mary Beth Quirk via The Consumerist

Just What We Don’t Need — More Gift Cards! And This One’s From Facebook Mary Beth Quirk

(Facebook)

Say the word “gift card” around Consumerist HQ and hackles will raise at an alarming rate. Which is why we’re greeting the news of a new gift card offered by Facebook with what one might call, “extreme wariness and trepidation.” Building on the social network’s recent launch of Facebook Gifts, these cards will be able to hold balances for multiple retailers and are reusable.

Facebook announced the new service today on its blog, touting the card’s ability to hold balances for Jamba Juice, Olive Garden, Sephora and Target. Which means the possibility of gift card shenanigans with not just one retailer, but four!

Here’s how it will work: After picking a pal to send a gift to, you will select the retailer you want to use to gift your pal from Gift Cards & Digital, choose a dollar amount and pay for it. Your friend will get a notification right away and receive a physical gift card in the mail a few days later.

Any other gift card balances you receive will be added to your existing card, so at least you won’t have a pile of plastic sitting in a drawer just waiting to be forgotten. A feature we’ll admit some begrudging interest in is the ability to view the balances for each retailer on your phone or desktop Facebook apps, so at least there (maybe) won’t be any nasty surprises when you try to use it.

There are still a lot of specifics that are unclear as of now — for example, will the gift card automatically deduct a fee after not being used for a long period of time? And will disputes be handled by Facebook or the retailers directly?

We’ve reached out to Facebook with those questions and will keep you in the loop.

Introducing the Facebook Card, a New Type of Gift Card [Facebook]

by Mary Beth Quirk via The Consumerist

Just What We Don’t Need — More Gift Cards! And This One’s From Facebook

(Facebook)

Say the word “gift card” around Consumerist HQ and hackles will raise at an alarming rate. Which is why we’re greeting the news of a new gift card offered by Facebook with what one might call, “extreme wariness and trepidation.” Building on the social network’s recent launch of Facebook Gifts, these cards will be able to hold balances for multiple retailers and are reusable.

Facebook announced the new service today on its blog, touting the card’s ability to hold balances for Jamba Juice, Olive Garden, Sephora and Target. Which means the possibility of gift card shenanigans with not just one retailer, but four!

Here’s how it will work: After picking a pal to send a gift to, you will select the retailer you want to use to gift your pal from Gift Cards & Digital, choose a dollar amount and pay for it. Your friend will get a notification right away and receive a physical gift card in the mail a few days later.

Any other gift card balances you receive will be added to your existing card, so at least you won’t have a pile of plastic sitting in a drawer just waiting to be forgotten. A feature we’ll admit some begrudging interest in is the ability to view the balances for each retailer on your phone or desktop Facebook apps, so at least there (maybe) won’t be any nasty surprises when you try to use it.

There are still a lot of specifics that are unclear as of now — for example, will the gift card automatically deduct a fee after not being used for a long period of time? And will disputes be handled by Facebook or the retailers directly?

We’ve reached out to Facebook with those questions and will keep you in the loop.

Introducing the Facebook Card, a New Type of Gift Card [Facebook]

by Mary Beth Quirk via The Consumerist

Customer Sues L.A. Fitness, Says Pervy Trainers Gave Her ‘Suggestive’ Exercises

(CBS 11)

No one expects their workout with a personal trainer to be comfortable, but they also don’t expect to be sexually harassed, either. A Dallas woman is suing her local branch of L.A. Fitness, claiming that two different trainers at the gym made lewd comments to her and gave her what she considers “suggestive” exercises to do in front of them. Now she’s suing for Deceptive Trade Practices and Negligence, claiming that she kept up her end of the gym contract (paid her bills, didn’t break any rules) but that L.A. Fitness didn’t provide a safe workout environment.

When she switched trainers due to what she called “strange exercises,” and comments about her chest, the new trainer provided her with more of the same, as well as lewd texts. When she complained to gym management, they offered her $400––two months’ fees––but she wasn’t interested. “I would like to have these guys realize they can’t treat women this way,” she told the local CBS affiliate.

“Sexually Suggestive” Exercises Center of LA Fitness Lawsuit [CBS DFW]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Customer Sues L.A. Fitness, Says Pervy Trainers Gave Her ‘Suggestive’ Exercises Laura Northrup

(CBS 11)

No one expects their workout with a personal trainer to be comfortable, but they also don’t expect to be sexually harassed, either. A Dallas woman is suing her local branch of L.A. Fitness, claiming that two different trainers at the gym made lewd comments to her and gave her what she considers “suggestive” exercises to do in front of them. Now she’s suing for Deceptive Trade Practices and Negligence, claiming that she kept up her end of the gym contract (paid her bills, didn’t break any rules) but that L.A. Fitness didn’t provide a safe workout environment.

When she switched trainers due to what she called “strange exercises,” and comments about her chest, the new trainer provided her with more of the same, as well as lewd texts. When she complained to gym management, they offered her $400––two months’ fees––but she wasn’t interested. “I would like to have these guys realize they can’t treat women this way,” she told the local CBS affiliate.

“Sexually Suggestive” Exercises Center of LA Fitness Lawsuit [CBS DFW]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Customer Sues L.A. Fitness, Says Pervy Trainers Gave Her ‘Suggestive’ Exercises

(CBS 11)

No one expects their workout with a personal trainer to be comfortable, but they also don’t expect to be sexually harassed, either. A Dallas woman is suing her local branch of L.A. Fitness, claiming that two different trainers at the gym made lewd comments to her and gave her what she considers “suggestive” exercises to do in front of them. Now she’s suing for Deceptive Trade Practices and Negligence, claiming that she kept up her end of the gym contract (paid her bills, didn’t break any rules) but that L.A. Fitness didn’t provide a safe workout environment.

When she switched trainers due to what she called “strange exercises,” and comments about her chest, the new trainer provided her with more of the same, as well as lewd texts. When she complained to gym management, they offered her $400––two months’ fees––but she wasn’t interested. “I would like to have these guys realize they can’t treat women this way,” she told the local CBS affiliate.

“Sexually Suggestive” Exercises Center of LA Fitness Lawsuit [CBS DFW]

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

How Does Emmy-Winning Comedian With Her Own MTV Show Have $57,000 In Debt?

Comedian Sara Schaefer already has two Emmys to her name, and her new TV show Nikki & Sara Live just debuted this week on MTV. But fame and notoriety don’t necessarily equate to being smart about your finances.

“I’m on the verge of this huge thing happening, this TV show,” says Schaefer in a segment for PBS’ online series Modern Comedian [see slightly NSFW video above]. “But I’m going into it $57,000 in debt.”

Schaefer won a pair of Emmy awards for her work on the Jimmy Fallon show, though that has done nothing to get her out of all the money she owes to various creditors. There’s one card maxed out at $8,000, another for $13,000, a maxed-out overdraft line of credit at her bank, another credit card for a computer she purchased a few years back, $13,000 in student loans, and cash she owes to her father, which she describes as “More than $5,000… times two.”

“I have not been taught well on how to deal with money,” she explains. “And it is psychologically something I’ve struggled with my whole life.”

Like many young people trying to break through in the entertainment industry, Schaefer says she simply went “all in.”

“Every choice I’ve made has been with the idea that I would make it, that I would get there and get my big break,” she says, explaining that her mindset was, “I’m gonna totally fuck this up until it works out.”

Sara says she has no idea how much she’s paying each month in interest.

“When you have this much debt, you don’t realize how much you’re paying each month just to keep it afloat,” she tells filmmaker Scott Moran, who is not related to me because our names are spelled differently.

She says she’s her credit card companies’ favorite customer “because I max it out and then pay the minimum… They don’t ever want me to get out of this debt.”

That being said, Schaefer knows that no one forced her to get into this situation.

“It’s my own fault too, because I refuse to not live the life I want to live,” she admits. “When I want to do something or I want to buy something, I will find a way to make that happen.”

She doesn’t recommend that people follow her lead in financial matters. Instead, she says young people really need to educate themselves about credit.

“On the SATs, we all know what a fucking rhombus is, but we don’t know what APR stands for,” she jokes in her stand-up routine, during which she openly discusses her debt issues.

“If I could go back, I would definitely have made a lot of different choices,” says Schaefer, “but I don’t really regret it that much because it really is working out okay… hopefully.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

How Does Emmy-Winning Comedian With Her Own MTV Show Have $57,000 In Debt?

Comedian Sara Schaefer already has two Emmys to her name, and her new TV show Nikki & Sara Live just debuted this week on MTV. But fame and notoriety don’t necessarily equate to being smart about your finances.

“I’m on the verge of this huge thing happening, this TV show,” says Schaefer in a segment for PBS’ online series Modern Comedian [see slightly NSFW video above]. “But I’m going into it $57,000 in debt.”

Schaefer won a pair of Emmy awards for her work on the Jimmy Fallon show, though that has done nothing to get her out of all the money she owes to various creditors. There’s one card maxed out at $8,000, another for $13,000, a maxed-out overdraft line of credit at her bank, another credit card for a computer she purchased a few years back, $13,000 in student loans, and cash she owes to her father, which she describes as “More than $5,000… times two.”

“I have not been taught well on how to deal with money,” she explains. “And it is psychologically something I’ve struggled with my whole life.”

Like many young people trying to break through in the entertainment industry, Schaefer says she simply went “all in.”

“Every choice I’ve made has been with the idea that I would make it, that I would get there and get my big break,” she says, explaining that her mindset was, “I’m gonna totally fuck this up until it works out.”

Sara says she has no idea how much she’s paying each month in interest.

“When you have this much debt, you don’t realize how much you’re paying each month just to keep it afloat,” she tells filmmaker Scott Moran, who is not related to me because our names are spelled differently.

She says she’s her credit card companies’ favorite customer “because I max it out and then pay the minimum… They don’t ever want me to get out of this debt.”

That being said, Schaefer knows that no one forced her to get into this situation.

“It’s my own fault too, because I refuse to not live the life I want to live,” she admits. “When I want to do something or I want to buy something, I will find a way to make that happen.”

She doesn’t recommend that people follow her lead in financial matters. Instead, she says young people really need to educate themselves about credit.

“On the SATs, we all know what a fucking rhombus is, but we don’t know what APR stands for,” she jokes in her stand-up routine, during which she openly discusses her debt issues.

“If I could go back, I would definitely have made a lot of different choices,” says Schaefer, “but I don’t really regret it that much because it really is working out okay… hopefully.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

How Does Emmy-Winning Comedian With Her Own MTV Show Have $57,000 In Debt? Chris Morran

Comedian Sara Schaefer already has two Emmys to her name, and her new TV show Nikki & Sara Live just debuted this week on MTV. But fame and notoriety don’t necessarily equate to being smart about your finances.

“I’m on the verge of this huge thing happening, this TV show,” says Schaefer in a segment for PBS’ online series Modern Comedian [see slightly NSFW video above]. “But I’m going into it $57,000 in debt.”

Schaefer won a pair of Emmy awards for her work on the Jimmy Fallon show, though that has done nothing to get her out of all the money she owes to various creditors. There’s one card maxed out at $8,000, another for $13,000, a maxed-out overdraft line of credit at her bank, another credit card for a computer she purchased a few years back, $13,000 in student loans, and cash she owes to her father, which she describes as “More than $5,000… times two.”

“I have not been taught well on how to deal with money,” she explains. “And it is psychologically something I’ve struggled with my whole life.”

Like many young people trying to break through in the entertainment industry, Schaefer says she simply went “all in.”

“Every choice I’ve made has been with the idea that I would make it, that I would get there and get my big break,” she says, explaining that her mindset was, “I’m gonna totally fuck this up until it works out.”

Sara says she has no idea how much she’s paying each month in interest.

“When you have this much debt, you don’t realize how much you’re paying each month just to keep it afloat,” she tells filmmaker Scott Moran, who is not related to me because our names are spelled differently.

She says she’s her credit card companies’ favorite customer “because I max it out and then pay the minimum… They don’t ever want me to get out of this debt.”

That being said, Schaefer knows that no one forced her to get into this situation.

“It’s my own fault too, because I refuse to not live the life I want to live,” she admits. “When I want to do something or I want to buy something, I will find a way to make that happen.”

She doesn’t recommend that people follow her lead in financial matters. Instead, she says young people really need to educate themselves about credit.

“On the SATs, we all know what a fucking rhombus is, but we don’t know what APR stands for,” she jokes in her stand-up routine, during which she openly discusses her debt issues.

“If I could go back, I would definitely have made a lot of different choices,” says Schaefer, “but I don’t really regret it that much because it really is working out okay… hopefully.”

by Chris Morran via The Consumerist

Delta: Just Because Our Website Says You Get Free Movies, That Doesn’t Mean It’s True Laura Northrup

(zonaphoto)

For his recent cross-country flight on Delta, Josh took Economy Comfort class: it’s a little comfier than Economy, but not as fancy as Business class. Delta’s website says that people in this class don’t have to pay for movies on the in-flight entertainment system, but Josh’s actual experience and his conversations with Delta about having to pay for a movie indicate otherwise.

This past weekend I flew on Delta from L.A. to Atlanta. Delta offers a mid-tier class of travel that they call “Economy Comfort”. You pay a little extra for these seats and while not as nice as business class you do get a few perks including a bit more legroom. This is the type of ticket I purchased.

Once we were in the air I used the personal entertainment screen in my seat to browse through the available movies on the flight. Delta says on their website that movies on demand are complimentary for travelers in Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort so I was a bit surprised when the unit in my seat prompted me to pay $6 to watch a movie. I went ahead and swiped my credit card as I wanted to watch a movie.

After the flight I sent an e-mail to Delta’s customer service department and even quoted the test directly from their website:

Movies on demand are complimentary in the BusinessElite®, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. Movies on demand are available in additional language tracks which vary by aircraft and route.

This text is still on their website right now here.

Delta replied with the following, remarkably quoting the same text while at the same time saying that movies in Economy Comfort are not complimentary:

“Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the Business

Elite, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the

Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on

demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the

Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. While we would like to offer special

consideration in cases such as yours, we are unable to honor the many

requests that we receive from others in similar situations. We follow a

consistent policy to ensure that Delta is fair to everyone who travels

with us. Since the fee charged for the movie was correct, we

respectfully decline your request for a refund.”

I replied again and pointed out that it clearly states that movies are complimentary for Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort.

Delta then replied with the following:

“I understand you feel I did not adequately address your concerns. I was

happy to review your comments again to see if there was something I

missed. Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the

Economy Comfort cabins only on international flights, including Hawaiian

Islands and Alaska and not on domestic flights. Respectfully, there is

nothing more I can add. I am sorry to disappoint you, as I understand

this is not the answer you were expecting.”

It clearly states on Delta’s website (and in their first e-mail response) that movies are free in Economy Comfort. The regular “Economy” class is what gets free movies only on international and Hawaii/Alaska flights. It is right their on their website that Business Elite, First Class, AND Economy Comfort all get complimentary movies on demand.

If movies aren’t supposed to be free for Economy Comfort you would think that Delta would just admit that they have a mistake on their website and refund my $6, but instead they keep going back and forth with me (I received a similar response when I tried to contact their Twitter-based customer service as well). I even told them they could just give me some frequent flyer miles if the refund was too hard for them to process, but alas… nothing from them so far.

Is it a mistake, or is the wording ambiguous? If the website says what the Delta e-mail rep claims, then it should simply say, “Movies on Demand are complimentary for all passengers on international flights.” Unless there’s some sub-Economy class of human passengers who ride in giant animal crates in the cargo hold now.

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Delta: Just Because Our Website Says You Get Free Movies, That Doesn’t Mean It’s True

(zonaphoto)

For his recent cross-country flight on Delta, Josh took Economy Comfort class: it’s a little comfier than Economy, but not as fancy as Business class. Delta’s website says that people in this class don’t have to pay for movies on the in-flight entertainment system, but Josh’s actual experience and his conversations with Delta about having to pay for a movie indicate otherwise.

This past weekend I flew on Delta from L.A. to Atlanta. Delta offers a mid-tier class of travel that they call “Economy Comfort”. You pay a little extra for these seats and while not as nice as business class you do get a few perks including a bit more legroom. This is the type of ticket I purchased.

Once we were in the air I used the personal entertainment screen in my seat to browse through the available movies on the flight. Delta says on their website that movies on demand are complimentary for travelers in Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort so I was a bit surprised when the unit in my seat prompted me to pay $6 to watch a movie. I went ahead and swiped my credit card as I wanted to watch a movie.

After the flight I sent an e-mail to Delta’s customer service department and even quoted the test directly from their website:

Movies on demand are complimentary in the BusinessElite®, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. Movies on demand are available in additional language tracks which vary by aircraft and route.

This text is still on their website right now here.

Delta replied with the following, remarkably quoting the same text while at the same time saying that movies in Economy Comfort are not complimentary:

“Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the Business

Elite, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the

Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on

demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the

Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. While we would like to offer special

consideration in cases such as yours, we are unable to honor the many

requests that we receive from others in similar situations. We follow a

consistent policy to ensure that Delta is fair to everyone who travels

with us. Since the fee charged for the movie was correct, we

respectfully decline your request for a refund.”

I replied again and pointed out that it clearly states that movies are complimentary for Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort.

Delta then replied with the following:

“I understand you feel I did not adequately address your concerns. I was

happy to review your comments again to see if there was something I

missed. Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the

Economy Comfort cabins only on international flights, including Hawaiian

Islands and Alaska and not on domestic flights. Respectfully, there is

nothing more I can add. I am sorry to disappoint you, as I understand

this is not the answer you were expecting.”

It clearly states on Delta’s website (and in their first e-mail response) that movies are free in Economy Comfort. The regular “Economy” class is what gets free movies only on international and Hawaii/Alaska flights. It is right their on their website that Business Elite, First Class, AND Economy Comfort all get complimentary movies on demand.

If movies aren’t supposed to be free for Economy Comfort you would think that Delta would just admit that they have a mistake on their website and refund my $6, but instead they keep going back and forth with me (I received a similar response when I tried to contact their Twitter-based customer service as well). I even told them they could just give me some frequent flyer miles if the refund was too hard for them to process, but alas… nothing from them so far.

Is it a mistake, or is the wording ambiguous? If the website says what the Delta e-mail rep claims, then it should simply say, “Movies on Demand are complimentary for all passengers on international flights.” Unless there’s some sub-Economy class of human passengers who ride in giant animal crates in the cargo hold now.

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist

Delta: Just Because Our Website Says You Get Free Movies, That Doesn’t Mean It’s True

(zonaphoto)

For his recent cross-country flight on Delta, Josh took Economy Comfort class: it’s a little comfier than Economy, but not as fancy as Business class. Delta’s website says that people in this class don’t have to pay for movies on the in-flight entertainment system, but Josh’s actual experience and his conversations with Delta about having to pay for a movie indicate otherwise.

This past weekend I flew on Delta from L.A. to Atlanta. Delta offers a mid-tier class of travel that they call “Economy Comfort”. You pay a little extra for these seats and while not as nice as business class you do get a few perks including a bit more legroom. This is the type of ticket I purchased.

Once we were in the air I used the personal entertainment screen in my seat to browse through the available movies on the flight. Delta says on their website that movies on demand are complimentary for travelers in Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort so I was a bit surprised when the unit in my seat prompted me to pay $6 to watch a movie. I went ahead and swiped my credit card as I wanted to watch a movie.

After the flight I sent an e-mail to Delta’s customer service department and even quoted the test directly from their website:

Movies on demand are complimentary in the BusinessElite®, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. Movies on demand are available in additional language tracks which vary by aircraft and route.

This text is still on their website right now here.

Delta replied with the following, remarkably quoting the same text while at the same time saying that movies in Economy Comfort are not complimentary:

“Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the Business

Elite, First Class and Economy Comfort cabins, and for customers in the

Economy cabin on all international flights. Additionally, movies on

demand are complimentary in the Economy cabin on flights to/from the

Hawaiian Islands and Alaska. While we would like to offer special

consideration in cases such as yours, we are unable to honor the many

requests that we receive from others in similar situations. We follow a

consistent policy to ensure that Delta is fair to everyone who travels

with us. Since the fee charged for the movie was correct, we

respectfully decline your request for a refund.”

I replied again and pointed out that it clearly states that movies are complimentary for Business Elite, First Class, and Economy Comfort.

Delta then replied with the following:

“I understand you feel I did not adequately address your concerns. I was

happy to review your comments again to see if there was something I

missed. Please know that movies on demand are complimentary in the

Economy Comfort cabins only on international flights, including Hawaiian

Islands and Alaska and not on domestic flights. Respectfully, there is

nothing more I can add. I am sorry to disappoint you, as I understand

this is not the answer you were expecting.”

It clearly states on Delta’s website (and in their first e-mail response) that movies are free in Economy Comfort. The regular “Economy” class is what gets free movies only on international and Hawaii/Alaska flights. It is right their on their website that Business Elite, First Class, AND Economy Comfort all get complimentary movies on demand.

If movies aren’t supposed to be free for Economy Comfort you would think that Delta would just admit that they have a mistake on their website and refund my $6, but instead they keep going back and forth with me (I received a similar response when I tried to contact their Twitter-based customer service as well). I even told them they could just give me some frequent flyer miles if the refund was too hard for them to process, but alas… nothing from them so far.

Is it a mistake, or is the wording ambiguous? If the website says what the Delta e-mail rep claims, then it should simply say, “Movies on Demand are complimentary for all passengers on international flights.” Unless there’s some sub-Economy class of human passengers who ride in giant animal crates in the cargo hold now.

by Laura Northrup via The Consumerist