Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Earthlink ripoff, a.k.a. sharp practice - caveat emptor

ok, so at the beginning of March i was laid up with a bad hip. knowing that i'd have a lot of time on my hands, i signed up (again) for dialup (no high speed available being available where i live) internet connection from Earthlink, a company i've dealt with before (from when i bought my first iBook, back in 2000). they had mailed me a special offer: $6.95 a month for the first six months for returning customers. so i signed up, giving the promo code, all fine and dandy.

but then the bill comes for the first month -- $9.95 -- so i called up Earthlink to ask why. the reason, they tell me, is that the $6.95 offer i signed up for had already expired when i first called (only they didn't tell me at the time). coincidentally, another identical $6.95 per month offer had arrived in the mail that very day; so i asked them if THAT offer, with a different promo code, had also expired. they said it had.

why mail expired promo offers? so that they don't have to honor them.

the conclusion, patient reader? apparently Earthlink has gone from being a somewhat respectable company to being just another ripoff scam. a sad day, but i suppose i shouldn't be surprised. don't you be either, next time you respond to a tempting advertisement -- especially from Earthlink.

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