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back to article Amazon says soz for foisting mag sub onto Kindle-touchers

Amazon has annoyed Kindle owners by appearing to sign them up to a paid-for bi-weekly magazine subscription they hadn't requested. After receiving an email informing them of their new subscription to Kindle Compass, their first billing date and the number of the credit card they'd be "charged" on, confused customers turned to …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Alright, so it's a mishap.

    It also highlights the weaknesses of this sort of service, where you hand over payment details to be used any time you click a button or other, or even if some faceless clerk elsewhere hits a button or other. Where they're making nice and Stuff, they also could've "forgotten" to send you that email at all and just started charging. The big advantage of taking cash to the corner shop is that it has to pass your fingers, as in you *know* you're paying. Electronic payment has no such clear "payment point" as happens when you pass some coins or notes to a merchant.

    It's one of the reasons various parties keep coming up with ever more fancy electronic payment methods. It makes it harder to track your money, and people not paying attention to their money are easier parted from same. For electronic money transfer to not become a scourge, we'll need to fix this. Somehow.

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  2. Daniel Bower

    To be fair

    The email from Amazon does make it clear that the subscription price is $0.00 p/m.

    I think that would suggest to someone of moderate intelligence (and thereby excluding their US customer base) that the service is free...

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    1. DavCrav
      Reply Icon

      Or that it wasn't free and a computer glitch made the e-mail come out with $0.00 on it.

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    2. Robert Carnegie Silver badge
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      But

      If it's free, why are they putting it on your credit card?

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    3. Anonymous Coward
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      Thumb Down

      Being too fair

      You missed the lines "Free Trial Length: 14 Days ... 1st Billing Date: 01/19/12", which mean that you will be automatically signed up to start paying after 14 days. It is a shoddy way to do business and I am not convinced by the 'we made a mistake' excuse.

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      1. heyrick Silver badge
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        @ JustAKOS

        I have never bought a kindle book,but I have downloaded free ones.

        They come with a receipt, including credit card details,total cost of... zero. Maybe Amazon's system simply does not understand what's the word free means?

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        1. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          @heyrick

          I concur about the free books, as I have done the same. It may be that they were intending to follow the same line with free subscriptions - ie use the payment mechanism with zero cost. However, the fact that the mechanism used has a trial period allows scope for the recipient to be charged after 14 days, so it is not equivalent to the free book scenario. Personally, I wouldn't give them the benefit of the doubt.

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  3. Efros

    Amazon App store

    Has the same wording for Free Apps, Has done since it's inception, never caused any hassle there.

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    1. Anonymous Coward
      Reply Icon
      Anonymous Coward

      and for free books .... you still have to press a "buy" button and you get an email with an copy of an invoice for £0.00

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  4. Andy Livingstone

    You just have to love Amazon

    At least as much as they love to use only those "cannot accept incoming email" words. Customer communication in the digital age?

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  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    the number one reason not to do business on the internet.

    Note: This e-mail was sent from a notification-only e-mail address that cannot accept incoming e-mail. Please do not reply directly to this message.

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  6. Graham Marsden
    WTF?

    Optional...?

    That word implies some sort of pre-medidated choice on the part of the *customer*, rather than a decision by the supplier to opt them in, hence why the Unsolicited Goods and Services Act in England makes such things illegal.

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  7. Stephen W Harris
    Mushroom

    Spam?

    Isn't this sort of thing more commonly known as "spam"? So Amazon are now spamming Kindle owners directly on their Kindle...

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  8. carter brandon

    Wireless has never been turned on, on my Kindle, so Amazon are unable to send me anything The only books on my Kindle are books I have uploaded using the USB connection to my PC. I bought my Kindle to use as *I* want.

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  9. Toastan Buttar
    Facepalm

    How hard can it be?

    "You are receiving a copy of our free e-magazine for a trial period of 14 days. You will never be charged for this magazine, but if you do not wish to receive further copies, please let us know by unsubscribing."

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