You should head over and check out Josh Smith’s latest postings at WalletPop and then hit the front page to see what the whole site is about. As one of my friend’s put it, “It was surprisingly REALLY good…..more helpful than I thought it’d be!”.  Thanks for that vote of confidence Liz, I think there is a  complement hidden in there somewhere.

I’ll still be blogging here with loads of game, tech and mobile computing items but anything relating to consumer issues or personal finance will be posted on WalletPop.

In the mid 1600′s cheap cotton fabrics from India began to roll into the ports throughout England. The cotton products had many great features including, “It was cheap, it was light and it was washable. It came in a variety of bright colors and prints, and it was soft instead of itchy.” (Rivoli 153). If we compare DRM free music to music label restricted goods we find many similar features. DRM free music is cheap, easy to use on any device(light) and can be mixed or cut to suit the purchasers needs (washable…a stretch for this link ). The current state of the music industry also allows for more variance in types due to the internet, and if anyone out there sees DRM as soft rather than itchy and uncomfortable I question your sanity.

The interest of the wool weavers soon made it to Parliament with tales of labels closing and musicians starving mill closing and starving weavers. These parties also utilized the newspapers of the time to sensationalize several deaths which occurred when individuals happened to be wearing cotton underwear. With proclamations that this new underwear was dangerous a bill was passed which restricted the use of cotton to summer months. This was only the beginning of regulations placed upon the constituencies of England.

In 1689 in a move which seems to have inspired the RIAA and MPAA, the woolen interest groups pressured the government to require that,

all magistrates, judges, students of the Universities and all professors of the common and civil law….[must] wear gowns made of woolen manufacture [at all times of the year].

(Rivoli 154)

Attacking the universities seems to have a special place in the hearts of industry groups. Recently the Hollywood alphabet groups wedged a condition into the Higher Education Bill (HEA §494) which would force colleges to police networks and or purchase campus wide music subscription services.

“The language in the bill appears to be clear that failure to carry out the mandates would make an institution ineligible for participation in at least some part of Title IV (which deals with federal financial aid programs),” Steven Worona, director of policy and networking programs for the group Educause, said in a telephone interview Thursday. CNet

It seems that Universities and students are deemed as easy targets when it comes to saving dying industries. One of the only pieces of legislation actually passed which forced a group to wear woolen underoos required that no corpse could be buried in anything other than wool. Are you getting the same feeling in the pit of your stomach that I am? I can just see the RIAA requiring a Napster subscription for all buried loved ones in the event that they listen to a copy written harp tune in heaven or some Gwar down in the depths of hell!

Shortly after the Calicoe laws of 1701 it became clear to the industry that the Parliament couldn’t save the industry through legislation. I only wonder how long it will take the entertainment industry and congress to reach this same conclusion.

One of the positives of the Woolen legislation was the increase in entrepreneurial activities in England. Soon the production of cotton based goods sprung up throughout Britain and new jobs were created. This reminds me of the new alternative distribution methods for music ranging from the examples of Radiohead and NIN to the DRM freeing distribution of Amazon and Amie Street. When the official methods are restricted or cut off individuals find new ways to produce and prosper!  Unfortunately pieces of industry backed legislation can prevent cool technology from entering the market.

In 1719, possibly setting the precedent of attacking your customers wool weavers began attacking women on the street who wore calicoes (Rivoli 156)!   The news reports of the time were rife with attacks on “person’s wearing calicoes”.  Today news reports seem to be full of reports of the entertainment industry attacking its own customers, either through lawsuits, restrictions which impact only those who pay or bothersome warnings, again only shown to paying customers.

If we let history repeat itself we may see legislation like the law passed in 1733 which made it outright illegal to wear almost any type of cotton in England which lasted for decades.  In translating this move to our present time I am having trouble thinking of what the lobbyists would have us do short of requiring a tax for each person in order to subsidize the entertainment industry.  In any case, I don’t support a government propping up a dying industry.

About the Author’s views on music.

With all this being said, I don’t support pirating music, I currently use Rhapsody to get my music but I also consume a heavy amount of DRM free music from many sources.  One of my favorite genres of music is the mashup which is by most industry sources to be illegal.  I also don’t support DRM which prohibits me from using music I purchase on any device I want in a manner which suits me.  I only put up with the DRM on my subscription music because the value presented to me through volume outweighs any inconvenience.  I will purchase DRM free versions of the music which I want to own.

I snapped this humorous pricing issue at Staples. Not often that the store undersells the savings on something!  The savings is either really 31.45 or the purchased seperately price is incorrect.

I am posting this guiltily since I lamented the overposting of camera phone pricing errors on consumerist of late, but I found this one humorous.  A feeling I am sure all the other posters had regarding theirs.

From the video description:

Very cheap simple Abdominal Exercise ball early AM TV infomercial. Call to buy is fully automated. The quantity question is ambiguous/confusing & you end up with two units. They dont repeat the # or price so you dont know you have been had until you receive it. They get $8 S&H each & won’t refund that plus you have to pay postage again to send one back, IF, you can get an RMA. DONT GET SCREWED! If you used a check card, cancel it since they are billing some monthly for stuff not ordered.

This consumer ended up ordering two balls as well as getting signed up for the continuity dvd program. Don’t order the Bender Ball. As some commenters have said a kids kickball is a good replacement, though users are still on the lookout for a dvd replacement. Anyone out there want to put together a Youtube series for the Bender Ball workout?

The auto sales industry is often known for the high pressure sales tactics. The low pressure atmosphere of regional auto shows can lead to increased sales for local dealers due to the relaxed nature of experiencing many different cars. I think dealers could replicate this by allowing individuals to check out their entire stock without a watchful eye and constant blathering. Imagine if you arrived at the dealer’s lot and were handed a keyfob and blank key and told to press a button on the fob if you want an employee to come help you out with a car. This would be a benefit to the dealer due to the psychological benefit of walking around the lot with a new key!

While I’m here, dealers, if I give you my email and ask for information about a specific car you should not send me 4 emails saying how awesome your dealership is and leave me two phone messages before you have replied about my initial request.  It’s bad form.

This past weekend I had the chance to visit the Toledo Auto Show at the Seagate center and sit in numerous new vehicles. The show was a pleasant experience, I got to sit in numerous cars I cannot afford, met some Jeep enthusiasts. I also had a chance to discuss the fact that Yark Automotive Group in Toledo Ohio sold us an ’05 Equinox which had a major and potentially fatal safety issue with someone from Chevy corporate. The individual gave us advice on getting the problem resolved. A few things bother me about the setup of the Toledo Auto show but for now I’ll focus on the perception that the shows will increase sales due to .

Every time I have heard mention of the any of the big auto shows the author referred to an increase in sales for all of the local dealers. Many people pin this increase on the dealer incentives which usually increase near the time of local auto shows. I believe that the real reason sales increase post auto show is for a completely different reason! I cannot think of any other environment in which the consumer has such unfettered access to all of these vehicles in a low pressure setting. Good luck showing up on any dealership lot and hoping in and out of every model on the lot without getting a high pressure sales pitch.

In short sales increase not due to incentives or general the excitement of consumers but because consumers can get in and at least partially experience all kinds of makes and models without any pressure.  I’ll be following up later this week with a method for dealers to replicate the low pressure environment and boost car sales, all while having happy and satisfied customers.

Once I read through the enclosed disclosure I found a slew of fees associated with the new Mastercard I was being offered.

• $29 Account Setup Fee
• $95 Program Fee
• $48 Annual Fee
• $84 Monthly Servicing Fee ($7 per month)
• $20 Additional Card

These charges would bring the fee total on the card’s first statement to $199!   Just to get that across you start off with $199 in fees and you haven’t purchased anything.  After you get the card you better hope all you plan to use it for is the dollar menu at McDonald’s because your credit limit is $250.  Yes your new card will buy you about 17 gallons of Gas before you Max it out.  As an added Bonus First Premier bank will up your credit limit when available at a $25 charge each time your account is  able to increase.

Here are a few scans of the Disclosure:

There is no point in getting a credit card if your available balance is only $51 bucks.  Your just going to dig further into a hole and you would be better off just using your existing money to buy $51 worth of stuff at a cost of $51 instead of $250, and that is assuming you pay the balance in full before month two and cancel the card.  If you need a credit card that bad, try opening an account at a local credit union and getting a secured card.  That route is almost assured to be cheaper by month two even though the funds are sitting in the bank.

Dear Josh Smith,

We apologize for our recent video game pricing error and the incorrect information included in our follow up e-mail correspondence with you.

As we are always striving to provide a positive customer experience, we will be sending you a $10 electronic Gift Card toward a future purchase as an apology for your recent experience. (One Gift Card per affected customer; this card can only be used online at Walmart.com. Look for details in a separate email.)

As a reminder, your payment method was never charged for the canceled items. Any related authorization hold on your credit or debit card account will be released in accordance with your financial institution’s holds policy. Please contact your financial institution for more information.

If you have any questions, please email us at help@walmart.com.

Sincerely,

Customer Service at Walmart.com

www.walmart.com

While I’d rather have 2 games and $50 extra bucks in my pocket 800 MS points will certainly sooth my pain.  Given the circumstances I think this action is an appropriate action for something the retail giant could have as easily ignored.  Bravo Wally World, Bravo.

Previous Bender Ball Coverage:

Ordered a Bender Ball? You Joined a DVD Club.

This evening we received our Time Warner bill which was kindly padded with 3 random DVR and HD charges and a viewing of Transformers.  After 10 minutes on hold a rep “kindly” explained that we had in fact purchased Transformers and watched 2 hours worth of it on November 30th.  the Time Warner “eyeglass” apparently allows them to see the minutia of details regarding movie on demand purchases.  This “eyeglass” allows the rep to see not only when the movie was purchased but also each pause, fast forward, rewind etcetera.  After assuring me that a. I had purchased Transformers and b. she couldn’t refund the charge I switched gears to the multiple DVR and HD tier charges.

After trying to explain that I had a guaranteed package price for another 6 or so months I finally had the rep explain to my why I was being charged for an additional half a month.  After much back and forth we finally determined that Time Warner shows a Phantom 4250 cable box in our house which was assigned in September a a free promo.  Problem is in September we had a tech out to check line strength and when he closed the case our current box was disassociated from the account rendering it useless.  Either the tech or the rep who reneabled the account added the box and a 3 month promo to our account.  If teh tech did it maybe it is sitting in his house ordering movies all day, if it was the rep then my money is on a commission or a required sell rate.  This magical box was also the box that ordered Transformers.

The rep wanted to schedule a visit so that a cable company rep could verify that we weren’t stashing a cable box in the closet.  After Amber volunteered to empty the closets so that Time Warner knew we weren’t hold’n the rep’s second supervisor saw the futility in a visit.  Thankfully they are “looking into it” and will get in touch within a week or as soon as they track down the box’s location in the Time Warner system.   Normally I’d want the issue solved on the first call but it seems out there enough that I’ll give them a week, besides I need to focus on the car dealer who owes us for the repair on a our new vehicle which was sold with a potentially fatal safety issue.