We live in a day and age where rumors and contacts can be more reliable than news media, sorry, but I think that the OP has a point, if so many people got free subscription for two years, where are the people in this thread claiming as such? I hate SOE, but I'm not about to dismiss such a long and detailed post as a scam, especially when the stuff I see on the news is getting more and more unreliable to follow by the day, I don't think you have any right to go against this person if you don't even have the proof, it's like with hackers on World of Warcraft, so many people have been hacked in their accounts yet they are accused of trying throw hate at Blizzard even though they don't have any proof to prove otherwise, where's THEIR proof? I'm not going to listen to sod all of what the haters of the hater says because a few lines that have no facts or statements to back up what you say isn't going to get you anywhere. Quit playing the SOE hater hate maybe?
This is just the sort of thing that irritates me. YOU have completely failed to grasp any of the facts of this thread. Let me try to summarise for you:
SOE offer to suspend billing for those in the affected are of Katrina until September 2007. If you logged into SWG, in this case, between Spetember 2005 and September 2007 billing would resume because you have demonstrated you are able to play. The offer was a lifeline, not a charitable donation of 2 years free subs ~whilst playing~.
The OP complained to the supervisor, Mr Lyman, in charge of billiing/refunds in this case. His reply email to the OP stated
" Our records show hundreds, if not thousands, of consistent character logins from 10/26/2005 - today."
But wait, the OP pre paid $143.99!
"I'm willing to provide you a time extension in the amount of 60 days which is about the difference between 9/2/2005 and 10/26/2005."
Now, I can not find anywhere a statement from the OP about having not logged in until September this year, he does say he only viewed this message not so long ago, but that does not mean he only logged in for the first time in 2 years at that point.
If the OP had not logged into SWG between August 2005 and September 2007 then I retract all that I have said, maybe I missed it.
Rumor and contacts are not going to win you a lawsuit. I am sick of people making lawsuits over crap. At the slightest feeling of injustices people sue. Instead of getting the facts before hand they instantly talk of going to court to get justice. I hope the OP does sue and the court turns around and makes the OP pay all the court costs when he loses. That loss of cash will really fix his ceiling and fence. Instead of worrying about things he should he is baselessly attacking a company, that I personally do not like, that has done for once what they stated they would do. Oh the humanity.
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
As much as i can vagueley see your point I also see sony's.
1st login should mean your ready to play again and thus should be billed from that date.
Time to recover is totally different however Joe Bloggs with his millions could recover in a few weeks.
Whereas Joe Public takes time and money.
The one thing that has got me throughout your posts however is the constant wont fix my fence wont repair my floor etc
Why pay for a feckin game then when your house needed done you n your missus seriousley need to get your priority's right, sureley a few hrs not playing your jedi would fix a fence or a few months money saved by not having $30 a month go to SOE would retile your floor.
It all seems a little bit see what i can get for free to me. As for sueing jeebus christ its a game it was a vague worded statement from SOE anot a legally binding contract.
I realy cant understand your mentality behind it.
And nope im a SOE hater not a fanboi who spoke with my feet and my wallet when the NGE hit (aint bought a sony product since nov 05)
Rumor and contacts are not going to win you a lawsuit. I am sick of people making lawsuits over crap. At the slightest feeling of injustices people sue. Instead of getting the facts before hand they instantly talk of going to court to get justice. I hope the OP does sue and the court turns around and makes the OP pay all the court costs when he loses. That loss of cash will really fix his ceiling and fence. Instead of worrying about things he should he is baselessly attacking a company, that I personally do not like, that has done for once what they stated they would do. Oh the humanity.
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
Nooo not this again EULA and you ticking it every time you play means SOE can do what the hell they like no matter whats been said and by whom.
Is it right that one little tick box gives them the means to do these things NO
SOE being their usual weasaly selves. Just goes to show you that they made the announcement for PR and not for substance.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
Rumor and contacts are not going to win you a lawsuit. I am sick of people making lawsuits over crap. At the slightest feeling of injustices people sue. Instead of getting the facts before hand they instantly talk of going to court to get justice. I hope the OP does sue and the court turns around and makes the OP pay all the court costs when he loses. That loss of cash will really fix his ceiling and fence. Instead of worrying about things he should he is baselessly attacking a company, that I personally do not like, that has done for once what they stated they would do. Oh the humanity.
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
Nooo not this again EULA and you ticking it every time you play means SOE can do what the hell they like no matter whats been said and by whom.
Is it right that one little tick box gives them the means to do these things NO
is it illegal NO
Not one software company has ever used a EULA as a defense in a suit and none ever will. It's not worth the paper it's not printed on with the non signatures signed to it.
The EULA is valid only as a threat to use against EXISTING customers as a pretext to punishing them.
No contract (which is what a EULA is) can give one party carte blanche to violate state and federal fraud statutes, for example.
You could accept an EULA allowing Sony to kill you. Sony and the employe(s) involved in killing you would still be prosecuted for murder, because murder is an illegal act.
Why else do you think Sony was so quick to offer refunds on the TOOW expansion after initially saying no? Simple, advertising features that they knew were going to be taken out of the game, thus causing people to buy the expansion "in good faith" that they'd be able to use the features (CH for example) while WITHOLDING knowledge about the NGE until the day after the expansion was charged for (thus violating state, federal and international advertising laws) was an act of fraud.
The lawyers sat down with Smed and told him under no uncertain terms, EULA allowing gameplay changes or not, they would be sued, and they would lose.
If the EULA had been an absolute defense, SOE would have kept the money and told those asking for refunds to go F-themselves, like they are doing in the Katrina situation.
SOE is similarly vulnerable with respect to annual and semi-annual subscribers who bought them during the Pre-CU or CU period (I was one of those). When they made statements like "The CU is here to stay" and "Jedi will never be a starter profession", this can be said to influence the purchasing decisions of those people, who could have been said would not have been resonably expected to renew their subs had they knew about the NGE.
Basically, if the NGE was even on someone's drawing board during or before the CU period (and it clearly was) SOE is wide ass open to be sued. Discovery would be very interesting, as you would be entitled to grill Smed, Ward, Freeman, etc, as to exactly who made the NGE decision, and when was it made.
It's my theroy that the whole CU era itself was a fraud. The NGE was the plan from the get go when they abandoned the CURB (which was briefly on a test server and was a revised version of the original combat system) was abandoned. The CU was hacked together at the last minute as a transitional system introducing levels to the game, and converting Pre-CU skills/weapons/etc to values that could be brought into the NGE. The CU was not and was never intended to be a permanent system.
Sorry, Promyntheus, you're dead wrong on this one.
Read SOE's note anyway you want to, they were not offering free playtime. They suspended billing to allow Katrina victims "the time they needed to recover." Once you - and your wife - took time away from rebuilding to log into a game, that tells me you recovered.
Are you saying that you played because you thought you had paid for the time and didn't want to waste the money? Had you known otherwise, you would not have played? I didn't pick that out in your overlong post, but even if so, 2 free months is a fair offer. You should take it.
You have no case, either in court or in public opinion (except among the rabid haters).
There are plenty of real things to dog SOE about. This is a nonissue.
Sorry, Promyntheus, you're dead wrong on this one. Read SOE's note anyway you want to, they were not offering free playtime. They suspended billing to allow Katrina victims "the time they needed to recover." Once you - and your wife - took time away from rebuilding to log into a game, that tells me you recovered. Are you saying that you played because you thought you had paid for the time and didn't want to waste the money? Had you known otherwise, you would not have played? I didn't pick that out in your overlong post, but even if so, 2 free months is a fair offer. You should take it. You have no case, either in court or in public opinion (except among the rabid haters). There are plenty of real things to dog SOE about. This is a nonissue.
Nonissue you say.
One gas station (Sam's club) FINALLY opened 4-5 months later for a population of about 45-50,000 people.
2-3 hour gas line/food line for ice and bananas. Cash only.
That is just our city, Mandeville/Covington to our west were in the same bind...
one station if that opened.
No Grocery stores because ALL the perishable were destroyed thanks to Katrina.
Not like I could jump in my car and head to the nearest Store/7-11/Time saver and buy what we needed...
NOTHING WAS OPENED for MONTHS.
The one or two places that were opened were constantly looking for persons to employ.
CASH ONLY everywhere.
No Banks to get cash.
You just don't know the magnitude of destruction and chaos which Katrina caused in this area of the States.
Apparently NONE of you discrediting what I have said over and over do.
Until you experience first hand, you may NEVER know and pray to whatever entity you believe in... that you never do.
SO DON'T tell be non-issue... Months after Katrina we could not buy needed for materials because the majority of what we needed were either sold out and bought up with those that had surplus cash on hand, or the store providing the items were not opened yet due to lack of employees or no power/communications to function.
I DO not take foregranted any longer what I have in life... I KNOW what it is like to do with out.
Albeit I had a house to live in with my dogs to keep me company until power resumed, running water, communications... and was able to do SOMETHING besides listen to an AM radio to WWL and The mayor talk about how SLOW the Government was moving in getting aid to this area.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again.
This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is.
Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
Again, OP... we get it. You have been through a rough time. Everyone who has expressed a sentiment in that regard has expressed sympathy. Your town was wiped out. That was not SOE's fault. They can not reboot a server and wipe out your town, any more than it is Kyle Boller's fault lightning struck the football field in a Ravens vs Redskins game (Yeah, I actually heard someone blame a power outage during a lightning storm on Kyle Boller, quarterback for the Ravens football team) and your argument and precipice for blaming the woe's of the world on SOE, and expecting them to make everything all better is both illogical, and unwarranted. They gave people a "Time period to recover" and some took that time to focus solely on their homes. If you found time to game, you are not entitled to free game play just because your priorities got a bit contorted. Take some time off man. You sound overly stressed out. Spend some time with your wife. Cancel your subscription to all SOE games, and use the money to do something nice for your wife, away from a computer, and preferably away from that area. You obviously need a break, so does SOE. It is not their fault you do not have a fence. Maybe instead of trying to make issue where it is not valid, you should try building some bridges and mending fences. The term "Practice what you preach" comes to mind.
Disclaimer: I am not an SOE fanboi. Have no subs to any of their games, and have not for longer than I can recall. Though I do not have a subscription with them, I do have common sense.
Sorry, Promyntheus, you're dead wrong on this one. Read SOE's note anyway you want to, they were not offering free playtime. They suspended billing to allow Katrina victims "the time they needed to recover." Once you - and your wife - took time away from rebuilding to log into a game, that tells me you recovered. Are you saying that you played because you thought you had paid for the time and didn't want to waste the money? Had you known otherwise, you would not have played? I didn't pick that out in your overlong post, but even if so, 2 free months is a fair offer. You should take it. You have no case, either in court or in public opinion (except among the rabid haters). There are plenty of real things to dog SOE about. This is a nonissue.
Nonissue you say.
One gas station (Sam's club) FINALLY opened 4-5 months later for a population of about 45-50,000 people.
2-3 hour gas line/food line for ice and bananas. Cash only.
That is just our city, Mandeville/Covington to our west were in the same bind...
one station if that opened.
No Grocery stores because ALL the perishable were destroyed thanks to Katrina.
Not like I could jump in my car and head to the nearest Store/7-11/Time saver and buy what we needed...
NOTHING WAS OPENED for MONTHS.
The one or two places that were opened were constantly looking for persons to employ.
CASH ONLY everywhere.
No Banks to get cash.
You just don't know the magnitude of destruction and chaos which Katrina caused in this area of the States.
Apparently NONE of you discrediting what I have said over and over do.
Until you experience first hand, you may NEVER know and pray to whatever entity you believe in... that you never do.
SO DON'T tell be non-issue... Months after Katrina we could not buy needed for materials because the majority of what we needed were either sold out and bought up with those that had surplus cash on hand, or the store providing the items were not opened yet due to lack of employees or no power/communications to function.
I DO not take foregranted any longer what I have in life... I KNOW what it is like to do with out.
Albeit I had a house to live in with my dogs to keep me company until power resumed, running water, communications... and was able to do SOMETHING besides listen to an AM radio to WWL and The mayor talk about how SLOW the Government was moving in getting aid to this area.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again.
This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is.
Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
Jeebus hes not saying Katrina was a non issue hes saying chasing SOE over a vague statement they made is.
I have been in the reality you where in but mine was a house fire in which i had no insurance after 2 months in intensive care (got gf out but not myself) i spent 95% of my waking hours working the other 5% was doing jobs that i could manage around the house whilst saving the cash to pay for the work i couldnt do.
I dont think i even booted up my computer for about 7 month and didnt game for about a year and then when i did it wasnt to the degree that i used to i now have a max 20 hrs a week mmo rule and will not go over it, instead im out playing sports taking walks with the missus n dog and that time is coming down to 15hrs in 4 weeks time when my first child arrives.
The one thing i cant understand is your statement of you take nothing granted in life yet your just pissing your life away on a computer game and a futile argument with SOE over a statement they made that you can read a number of different ways.
I'm not going to knock you, OP. I have great sympathy for what everyone went through during/after the hurricane. However, if you did take time out to log back into the game, and I was part of a company like SOE, I wouldn't see any reason to suspend payment. Remember, SOE is not a watchdog, I don't think they would be able to track the situations of 13,000 odd people for this matter. Just be appreciative that they took you into consideration when indeed, they didn't even have to.
Nonissue you say. <snip> Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
Perhaps I was unclear. I apologize.
I do not doubt you went through hell. I thoroughly sympathize. I would not trade places with you.
The "nonissue" is your beef with SOE. I simply cannot see where you have a legitimate complaint in that regard. Your energy is best spent elsewhere.
SOE being their usual weasaly selves. Just goes to show you that they made the announcement for PR and not for substance.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
I think at this point it's worth highlighting the sentence from your earlier post....
"There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game!"
Now, even with all the statements at hand you still assumed that (like most of us) SOE had given the effected people in that region 2 years free subs. You made that assumption, I made that assumption so I I'm pretty sure a lot of people made the same assumption and why? Because it was very, very poorly worded. Whether that's down to a limited grasp of the English language or because it was intended to be read in that manner as to mislead people into thinking that SOE were being more generous than they actually were... well, that's for you to decide yourself, my mind was made up on such matters a very long time ago.
...The spread of secondary and latterly of tertiary education has created a large population of people, often with well developed literary and scholarly tastes, who have been educated far beyond their capacity to undertake analytical thought.
This thread is such a joke in swaying blame in such a wrong direction ,it borders on the line of stupidity.
If anyone here thinks SOE has ANY responsibility to players of a game that costs maybe 15$ a mnth,they need there head examined.They offer there service ,if it runs properly then they have fullfilled there obligation.If they want to spend there time and money/resources tracking down disaster victims and offer to reimburse them or whatever,that is FAR beyond anything they are obligated to do.
How about the victims who will have to wait mtnhs or many years before getting there insurance claims.That is a real life issue,like losing homes or losing lives or other more IMPORTANT valueable things in there lives than any stupid game.How about your insanely beloved bush,who sees fit to spend BILLIONS on weapons of war,but wont come to the IMMEDIATE aid of there own countries victims or problems.How does that make you feel when BUSH is building a 2500$ gun and your family member needs serious hospital care?
If anyone here or any other gaming site had a severe health issue or family issue,would you spend your last dollars on weapons of war or for the immediate responsible use of aiding your family or victims.?People need to get there heads on straight before worrying about 15$ a mnth on a stupid game and look around your selves at real life issues.Blaming SOE for anything ,when there is so MANY other real life issues going on around you is insane and IMO irresponsible.Start looking at yoursleves and ask who have you helped lately?or how does your country or govmnt help your people who pay there taxes and wages of the beaurecrats.RFLMAO ,bush has to visit the sites of disasters,before he acknowledges anything,and then prepares a BS speech like hes going to help them all 100%,but years later nothing is done or victims are on TV shows complaining they havnt seen a dime of help.One poster is talking about ONE gas station being able to open? well where was your beloved country?where was BUSH and his cohorts?i bet he has GAS and a full stomach every night of the week.
I think SOE is a flagship for whiners to place unjust blame on anything that bothers them.There is much larger fish to fry in your own back yards ,but most tend to turn the other cheek and blame a gaming company? lmao.Wasn't that school shooting also blamed on a game?i think they blamed WOW or something stupid.Typical of so many ,blame something or someone else.
I see more slandering of SOE on this topic when really it shouild be all PRAISe than i saw ,in the WOW topic when there was mass killing of players that setup up a funeral or something along that lines in WOW.They were basically setting up a day of mourning/a show of respect to a player that passed away in real life,but where was the BLIZZARD bashing?They reported to blizzard ,but they couldn't care less about a person who passed away in real life,they figured it didn't belong in there game.What do you think is more important to someone who has lost a family member or close friend,15$ a mnth? or a show of respect for the person who passed away?
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again. This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is. Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
I don't get it.. None of the above is in any way the fault or responsibility of SOE. Are you hinting, in the quote above, that because you were not fully recovered when you first signed into SWG that SOE somehow owes you $$ or have reneged on their promise?
It was truly awful what happened to you and everyone affected by Katrina, but I cannot sympathise with you on this particular issue regarding SOE's offer and YOUR misinterpretation of that offer.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again. This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is. Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
I don't get it.. None of the above is in any way the fault or responsibility of SOE. Are you hinting, in the quote above, that because you were not fully recovered when you first signed into SWG that SOE somehow owes you $$ or have reneged on their promise?
It was truly awful what happened to you and everyone affected by Katrina, but I cannot sympathise with you on this particular issue regarding SOE's offer and YOUR misinterpretation of that offer.
Originally posted by efefia
Originally posted by Lucifrank
Originally posted by efefia
Originally posted by Lucifrank
Originally posted by cabalist
SOE being their usual weasaly selves. Just goes to show you that they made the announcement for PR and not for substance.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
I think at this point it's worth highlighting the sentence from your earlier post....
"There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game!"
Now, even with all the statements at hand you still assumed that (like most of us) SOE had given the effected people in that region 2 years free subs. You made that assumption, I made that assumption so I I'm pretty sure a lot of people made the same assumption and why? Because it was very, very poorly worded. Whether that's down to a limited grasp of the English language or because it was intended to be read in that manner as to mislead people into thinking that SOE were being more generous than they actually were... well, that's for you to decide yourself, my mind was made up on such matters a very long time ago.
...The spread of secondary and latterly of tertiary education has created a large population of people, often with well developed literary and scholarly tastes, who have been educated far beyond their capacity to undertake analytical thought.
I take back the good things I said about the SOE Katrina situation.
My impression was, very clearly, that SOE had suspended billing regardless of online status for those affected by Katrina, in recognition of the hardships they were enduring.
That impression, obviously, was incorrect.
Now we find that this was indeed another cynical stunt by SOE to appear to be compassionate.
CH, Jedi, Commando, Smuggler, BH, Scout, Doctor, Chef, BE...yeah, lots of SWG time invested.
It clearly says in their message that billing is only being suspended. It does not say you are getting free subscription. Actually, SOE, probably just saved themselve a lot of hassles by doing that. They did indeed try to put a positive spin on something that was actually saving their asses from lawsuits. They didn't say they were giving anyone free playing time. I'm know that's not what you wanted to hear.
SOE customer service does suck, and so do their games.
You played so you payed. If you were realy in desperate times you shouldnt be playing a game. It doesnt say that your sub is free, and since nobody got a free sub you dont have anything to argue
You played so you payed. If you were realy in desperate times you shouldnt be playing a game. It doesnt say that your sub is free, and since nobody got a free sub you dont have anything to argue
Very clearly, the implication was that you would not pay if you played, because of the circumstances of Katrina. That was the impression that many had of this particular SOE PR campaign.
Note that in game ALL maintenance on housing was suspened for months for ALL players due to Katrina. The implication was, we're doing the same for those who were in the disaster area in real life. This was, to me, very clearly what SOE was communicating to the public at large...look how compassionate, how considerate we are of the hurricane victims. We're giving them escapism from their plight out of the goodness of our hearts.
But, alas, the PR campaign met the corporate bottom line, and we see who wins.
Turns out SOE isn't nearly as compassionate as they'd like us to believe.
CH, Jedi, Commando, Smuggler, BH, Scout, Doctor, Chef, BE...yeah, lots of SWG time invested.
Ysa know, this thread is an excellent example of the depth of idiocy amongst gamers today, as well as a demonstration of people seeing what they want to see. The post by Sony was very clear in stating that peoples fees would be "suspended" until such time as they were able to play again. Anyone who sees "I get to play for free" from that is either incapable of reading, or is intentionally not reading that segment of the posting by SOE. Again, I am no fan of SOE's online services, and do not play any of their games, but I am not going to rally behind the march against them with people who are so obviously clueless. All of the information has been presented in this thread to very clearly show the facts contrary to the OP's position.
All of that understood, it occurs to me that if Sony HAD indeed posted something to the effect of "We are sorry for the affected individuals and victims of Katrina and are allowing them ot play for free for two years" or whatever, however you wish to spin it... instead of THIS thread, we would be seeing all of the haters and hangers on protesting vehemently about a marketing ploy on the part of Sony due to insensitivity of their company. Something to the effect of "Look at those Sony bastards! People are in a time of crisis, and all they can think of is not losing their numbers so are giving them free time to play a game when they should really be focusing on rebuilding their lives and creating a future for their families." Really people, get over it. We understand that you are haters of SOE, and I personally can understand why a lot of you would be, and will refuse to play their games. But jumping on every opportunity to trash talk SOE does nothing for you but make you look like idiots and/or whiners looking for another chance to spout hate or dischord. Time to get a new hobby. I would suggest picking up a video game, but... yeah.
i would have to agree with the majority here...while i am sorry you suffered, SOE did say in very simple language that the billing was suspended until you were able to play again. It says no where that you would get 2 free years, nor that you would get to play for free.
i would have to agree with the majority here...while i am sorry you suffered, SOE did say in very simple language that the billing was suspended until you were able to play again. It says no where that you would get 2 free years, nor that you would get to play for free.
Alrighty, reread my initial post.
I was without the game as per SOE records from Katrina til the end of October.
During that time period I was billed all the way until September 2007.
My wife was not logged into the game longer than that. at least another month, she was still billed.
Using the URL website archive (see previous posts), SOE only left the "suspended billing" up for less than one month after they offered it. With only 1 month notice when players were without communications or power for 2 months or more how are they suppose to know billing was Supposed to be suspended?
As I said earlier, the minute I found out that we were suppose to receive "suspended billing" I contacted SOE. Did they credit my account or my wife's? No. They offered 30 days each extensions... hardly what they told the public SOE was giving Katrina Victims.
I pressed my case further with SOE, Lyman looked further into the matter and noticed it was 2 months before I logged on, he changed the offer to 60 days and said billing as to resume once "a" character was logged into the game. I can live with that.
I asked SOE to check my wife's history since I know she had not played longer than I had.
SOE comes back saying, billing resumes when "A" player is logged into SWG OR if something is purchased from SOE, your wife purchased Trials of Obi-Wan. After 2 months of boredom, no outside contact or much of anything, that was the ONLY luxury she purchased.
Again and again and again, SOE changes their policy.
1st Suspended Billing until Katrina Victims Recover.
2nd Suspended Billing until "A" player is logged in.
3rd Suspended Billing until "A" player is logged in OR SOE sells you something.
Nice the way they change their story each and everytime I talk to SOE CS.
I have had no problems with game play, was never much on combat, I cannot stand the Customer Support System SOE has.
Loved the game at first, then was indifferent with CU and NGE... but all the while, the CS has got to be the worst I have EVER had to deal with. If they were a comic book character it would have to be TWO-FACE from Batman, hands down.
If SOE claimed tax deductions for suspending my wife's and I's account during Katrina and still billed us, that is Tax Fraud.
That is stealing tax money from the public for schools, roads and improvements. It is not just hurting the players they were suppose to help, it is hurting the community they are suppose to be paying taxes to, and IF they claimed it and billed(which I know the billed, my wife and I have the statements). then SOE lied to the IRS.
Now if a company is going to "give" something as charity, you bet they are gonna claim it as a tax write off.
SOE being their usual weasaly selves. Just goes to show you that they made the announcement for PR and not for substance.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
"For the two years that have followed, the accounts of the affected SOE gamers have not been billed but have been preserved. Beginning on Monday, September 17th, the accounts for these 13,000 SOE gamers will resume the normal billing processes."
When I read this announcement I got the impression that billing had been suspended for 2 years for customers that were directly impacted by Katrina. It sounded like SOE thought that 2 years was a long enough recovery time, and now billing will resume. That sounds really nice. According to the OP, however, the actual details of what SOE was doing seem to paint a very different picture. The announcement doesn't say anything at all about billing being resumed at log in, or if you purchase anything from SOE. If that's what actually happened, then that's what SOE should say they did. The announcement makes it sound like billing was halted for 2 years for Katrina victims, period. That sounds very humanitarian, but evidently is not what was done. If SOE wanted to brag about something, for goodness sake just brag about what you actually did. Don't make it sound so much better than it really was.
Ysa know, this thread is an excellent example of the depth of idiocy amongst gamers today, as well as a demonstration of people seeing what they want to see. The post by Sony was very clear in stating that peoples fees would be "suspended" until such time as they were able to play again. Anyone who sees "I get to play for free" from that is either incapable of reading, or is intentionally not reading that segment of the posting by SOE. Again, I am no fan of SOE's online services, and do not play any of their games, but I am not going to rally behind the march against them with people who are so obviously clueless. All of the information has been presented in this thread to very clearly show the facts contrary to the OP's position. All of that understood, it occurs to me that if Sony HAD indeed posted something to the effect of "We are sorry for the affected individuals and victims of Katrina and are allowing them ot play for free for two years" or whatever, however you wish to spin it... instead of THIS thread, we would be seeing all of the haters and hangers on protesting vehemently about a marketing ploy on the part of Sony due to insensitivity of their company. Something to the effect of "Look at those Sony bastards! People are in a time of crisis, and all they can think of is not losing their numbers so are giving them free time to play a game when they should really be focusing on rebuilding their lives and creating a future for their families." Really people, get over it. We understand that you are haters of SOE, and I personally can understand why a lot of you would be, and will refuse to play their games. But jumping on every opportunity to trash talk SOE does nothing for you but make you look like idiots and/or whiners looking for another chance to spout hate or dischord. Time to get a new hobby. I would suggest picking up a video game, but... yeah.
No, if SOE said they suspended billing until Katrina survivors were able to once again log in, I would have thought they at least did the right thing. They didn't say this in their announcement though. The P.R. and the actual details are incongruent in this regard.
I'll also add that I think it's unnecessary to refer to others as idiots/whiners. I assumed initially that this was some kind of verbal bullying on your part, but maybe you're just frustrated by people who see things from a different perspective. I dunno, anyways, my point is that I would acknowledge it if SOE did something helpful, but their P.R. statement doesn't seem to match what they really did. And, name calling bugs me.
Comments
This is just the sort of thing that irritates me. YOU have completely failed to grasp any of the facts of this thread. Let me try to summarise for you:
SOE offer to suspend billing for those in the affected are of Katrina until September 2007. If you logged into SWG, in this case, between Spetember 2005 and September 2007 billing would resume because you have demonstrated you are able to play. The offer was a lifeline, not a charitable donation of 2 years free subs ~whilst playing~.
The OP complained to the supervisor, Mr Lyman, in charge of billiing/refunds in this case. His reply email to the OP stated
" Our records show hundreds, if not thousands, of consistent character logins from 10/26/2005 - today."
But wait, the OP pre paid $143.99!
"I'm willing to provide you a time extension in the amount of 60 days which is about the difference between 9/2/2005 and 10/26/2005."
Now, I can not find anywhere a statement from the OP about having not logged in until September this year, he does say he only viewed this message not so long ago, but that does not mean he only logged in for the first time in 2 years at that point.
If the OP had not logged into SWG between August 2005 and September 2007 then I retract all that I have said, maybe I missed it.
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
As much as i can vagueley see your point I also see sony's.
1st login should mean your ready to play again and thus should be billed from that date.
Time to recover is totally different however Joe Bloggs with his millions could recover in a few weeks.
Whereas Joe Public takes time and money.
The one thing that has got me throughout your posts however is the constant wont fix my fence wont repair my floor etc
Why pay for a feckin game then when your house needed done you n your missus seriousley need to get your priority's right, sureley a few hrs not playing your jedi would fix a fence or a few months money saved by not having $30 a month go to SOE would retile your floor.
It all seems a little bit see what i can get for free to me. As for sueing jeebus christ its a game it was a vague worded statement from SOE anot a legally binding contract.
I realy cant understand your mentality behind it.
And nope im a SOE hater not a fanboi who spoke with my feet and my wallet when the NGE hit (aint bought a sony product since nov 05)
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
Nooo not this again EULA and you ticking it every time you play means SOE can do what the hell they like no matter whats been said and by whom.
Is it right that one little tick box gives them the means to do these things NO
is it illegal NO
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
SOE is so wide open to lawsuits based on the CUNGE and other things they've said and done it's not funny. It's a matter of when, not if they get their asses handed to them in a court.
SOE is liable for what they say and do. For example, Smed stated "The CU is here to stay". He said this less than 4 months before the NGE. SOE has to back up that statement and didn't. Another example, it was stated by SOE that "Jedi will never be a starter profession". Again, the person who made that statement represented SOE.
Is the CU still there? Are Jedi still a non starter profession?
If the answer to either of those questions is no, there is grounds for a suit.
Nooo not this again EULA and you ticking it every time you play means SOE can do what the hell they like no matter whats been said and by whom.
Is it right that one little tick box gives them the means to do these things NO
is it illegal NO
Not one software company has ever used a EULA as a defense in a suit and none ever will. It's not worth the paper it's not printed on with the non signatures signed to it.
The EULA is valid only as a threat to use against EXISTING customers as a pretext to punishing them.
No contract (which is what a EULA is) can give one party carte blanche to violate state and federal fraud statutes, for example.
You could accept an EULA allowing Sony to kill you. Sony and the employe(s) involved in killing you would still be prosecuted for murder, because murder is an illegal act.
Why else do you think Sony was so quick to offer refunds on the TOOW expansion after initially saying no? Simple, advertising features that they knew were going to be taken out of the game, thus causing people to buy the expansion "in good faith" that they'd be able to use the features (CH for example) while WITHOLDING knowledge about the NGE until the day after the expansion was charged for (thus violating state, federal and international advertising laws) was an act of fraud.
The lawyers sat down with Smed and told him under no uncertain terms, EULA allowing gameplay changes or not, they would be sued, and they would lose.
If the EULA had been an absolute defense, SOE would have kept the money and told those asking for refunds to go F-themselves, like they are doing in the Katrina situation.
SOE is similarly vulnerable with respect to annual and semi-annual subscribers who bought them during the Pre-CU or CU period (I was one of those). When they made statements like "The CU is here to stay" and "Jedi will never be a starter profession", this can be said to influence the purchasing decisions of those people, who could have been said would not have been resonably expected to renew their subs had they knew about the NGE.
Basically, if the NGE was even on someone's drawing board during or before the CU period (and it clearly was) SOE is wide ass open to be sued. Discovery would be very interesting, as you would be entitled to grill Smed, Ward, Freeman, etc, as to exactly who made the NGE decision, and when was it made.
It's my theroy that the whole CU era itself was a fraud. The NGE was the plan from the get go when they abandoned the CURB (which was briefly on a test server and was a revised version of the original combat system) was abandoned. The CU was hacked together at the last minute as a transitional system introducing levels to the game, and converting Pre-CU skills/weapons/etc to values that could be brought into the NGE. The CU was not and was never intended to be a permanent system.
Sorry, Promyntheus, you're dead wrong on this one.
Read SOE's note anyway you want to, they were not offering free playtime. They suspended billing to allow Katrina victims "the time they needed to recover." Once you - and your wife - took time away from rebuilding to log into a game, that tells me you recovered.
Are you saying that you played because you thought you had paid for the time and didn't want to waste the money? Had you known otherwise, you would not have played? I didn't pick that out in your overlong post, but even if so, 2 free months is a fair offer. You should take it.
You have no case, either in court or in public opinion (except among the rabid haters).
There are plenty of real things to dog SOE about. This is a nonissue.
Nonissue you say.
One gas station (Sam's club) FINALLY opened 4-5 months later for a population of about 45-50,000 people.
2-3 hour gas line/food line for ice and bananas. Cash only.
That is just our city, Mandeville/Covington to our west were in the same bind...
one station if that opened.
No Grocery stores because ALL the perishable were destroyed thanks to Katrina.
Not like I could jump in my car and head to the nearest Store/7-11/Time saver and buy what we needed...
NOTHING WAS OPENED for MONTHS.
The one or two places that were opened were constantly looking for persons to employ.
CASH ONLY everywhere.
No Banks to get cash.
You just don't know the magnitude of destruction and chaos which Katrina caused in this area of the States.
Apparently NONE of you discrediting what I have said over and over do.
Until you experience first hand, you may NEVER know and pray to whatever entity you believe in... that you never do.
SO DON'T tell be non-issue... Months after Katrina we could not buy needed for materials because the majority of what we needed were either sold out and bought up with those that had surplus cash on hand, or the store providing the items were not opened yet due to lack of employees or no power/communications to function.
I DO not take foregranted any longer what I have in life... I KNOW what it is like to do with out.
Albeit I had a house to live in with my dogs to keep me company until power resumed, running water, communications... and was able to do SOMETHING besides listen to an AM radio to WWL and The mayor talk about how SLOW the Government was moving in getting aid to this area.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again.
This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is.
Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
If you do not stand-up for what you believe in... No one else will.
BBB=Useless see why:
http://www.sandiego.bbb.org/sponsors/major.html
Again, OP... we get it. You have been through a rough time. Everyone who has expressed a sentiment in that regard has expressed sympathy. Your town was wiped out. That was not SOE's fault. They can not reboot a server and wipe out your town, any more than it is Kyle Boller's fault lightning struck the football field in a Ravens vs Redskins game (Yeah, I actually heard someone blame a power outage during a lightning storm on Kyle Boller, quarterback for the Ravens football team) and your argument and precipice for blaming the woe's of the world on SOE, and expecting them to make everything all better is both illogical, and unwarranted. They gave people a "Time period to recover" and some took that time to focus solely on their homes. If you found time to game, you are not entitled to free game play just because your priorities got a bit contorted. Take some time off man. You sound overly stressed out. Spend some time with your wife. Cancel your subscription to all SOE games, and use the money to do something nice for your wife, away from a computer, and preferably away from that area. You obviously need a break, so does SOE. It is not their fault you do not have a fence. Maybe instead of trying to make issue where it is not valid, you should try building some bridges and mending fences. The term "Practice what you preach" comes to mind.
Disclaimer: I am not an SOE fanboi. Have no subs to any of their games, and have not for longer than I can recall. Though I do not have a subscription with them, I do have common sense.
Nonissue you say.
One gas station (Sam's club) FINALLY opened 4-5 months later for a population of about 45-50,000 people.
2-3 hour gas line/food line for ice and bananas. Cash only.
That is just our city, Mandeville/Covington to our west were in the same bind...
one station if that opened.
No Grocery stores because ALL the perishable were destroyed thanks to Katrina.
Not like I could jump in my car and head to the nearest Store/7-11/Time saver and buy what we needed...
NOTHING WAS OPENED for MONTHS.
The one or two places that were opened were constantly looking for persons to employ.
CASH ONLY everywhere.
No Banks to get cash.
You just don't know the magnitude of destruction and chaos which Katrina caused in this area of the States.
Apparently NONE of you discrediting what I have said over and over do.
Until you experience first hand, you may NEVER know and pray to whatever entity you believe in... that you never do.
SO DON'T tell be non-issue... Months after Katrina we could not buy needed for materials because the majority of what we needed were either sold out and bought up with those that had surplus cash on hand, or the store providing the items were not opened yet due to lack of employees or no power/communications to function.
I DO not take foregranted any longer what I have in life... I KNOW what it is like to do with out.
Albeit I had a house to live in with my dogs to keep me company until power resumed, running water, communications... and was able to do SOMETHING besides listen to an AM radio to WWL and The mayor talk about how SLOW the Government was moving in getting aid to this area.
The first things my area of Slidell got back was Power and Communications. Which as soon as we did I was online to escape reality of which there was NOTHING to be done about until the CITY was functioning again.
This was NOT a thunderstorm and the lights go out and when they come back on, everything is back to normal. Which it seems you are all thinking it is.
Recovered from Katrina, about 85-90% now. When I first logged back on to swg to let everyone know we made it through... try about 25-35% which stayed at that percent until at least 8-12 months later. For reasons stated... above and beyond my control...
Jeebus hes not saying Katrina was a non issue hes saying chasing SOE over a vague statement they made is.I have been in the reality you where in but mine was a house fire in which i had no insurance after 2 months in intensive care (got gf out but not myself) i spent 95% of my waking hours working the other 5% was doing jobs that i could manage around the house whilst saving the cash to pay for the work i couldnt do.
I dont think i even booted up my computer for about 7 month and didnt game for about a year and then when i did it wasnt to the degree that i used to i now have a max 20 hrs a week mmo rule and will not go over it, instead im out playing sports taking walks with the missus n dog and that time is coming down to 15hrs in 4 weeks time when my first child arrives.
The one thing i cant understand is your statement of you take nothing granted in life yet your just pissing your life away on a computer game and a futile argument with SOE over a statement they made that you can read a number of different ways.
I'm not going to knock you, OP. I have great sympathy for what everyone went through during/after the hurricane. However, if you did take time out to log back into the game, and I was part of a company like SOE, I wouldn't see any reason to suspend payment. Remember, SOE is not a watchdog, I don't think they would be able to track the situations of 13,000 odd people for this matter. Just be appreciative that they took you into consideration when indeed, they didn't even have to.
I do not doubt you went through hell. I thoroughly sympathize. I would not trade places with you.
The "nonissue" is your beef with SOE. I simply cannot see where you have a legitimate complaint in that regard. Your energy is best spent elsewhere.
Best wishes to you and your family.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
I think at this point it's worth highlighting the sentence from your earlier post....Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
"There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game!"
Now, even with all the statements at hand you still assumed that (like most of us) SOE had given the effected people in that region 2 years free subs. You made that assumption, I made that assumption so I I'm pretty sure a lot of people made the same assumption and why? Because it was very, very poorly worded. Whether that's down to a limited grasp of the English language or because it was intended to be read in that manner as to mislead people into thinking that SOE were being more generous than they actually were... well, that's for you to decide yourself, my mind was made up on such matters a very long time ago.
...The spread of secondary and latterly of tertiary education has created a large population of people, often with well developed literary and scholarly tastes, who have been educated far beyond their capacity to undertake analytical thought.
This thread is such a joke in swaying blame in such a wrong direction ,it borders on the line of stupidity.
If anyone here thinks SOE has ANY responsibility to players of a game that costs maybe 15$ a mnth,they need there head examined.They offer there service ,if it runs properly then they have fullfilled there obligation.If they want to spend there time and money/resources tracking down disaster victims and offer to reimburse them or whatever,that is FAR beyond anything they are obligated to do.
How about the victims who will have to wait mtnhs or many years before getting there insurance claims.That is a real life issue,like losing homes or losing lives or other more IMPORTANT valueable things in there lives than any stupid game.How about your insanely beloved bush,who sees fit to spend BILLIONS on weapons of war,but wont come to the IMMEDIATE aid of there own countries victims or problems.How does that make you feel when BUSH is building a 2500$ gun and your family member needs serious hospital care?
If anyone here or any other gaming site had a severe health issue or family issue,would you spend your last dollars on weapons of war or for the immediate responsible use of aiding your family or victims.?People need to get there heads on straight before worrying about 15$ a mnth on a stupid game and look around your selves at real life issues.Blaming SOE for anything ,when there is so MANY other real life issues going on around you is insane and IMO irresponsible.Start looking at yoursleves and ask who have you helped lately?or how does your country or govmnt help your people who pay there taxes and wages of the beaurecrats.RFLMAO ,bush has to visit the sites of disasters,before he acknowledges anything,and then prepares a BS speech like hes going to help them all 100%,but years later nothing is done or victims are on TV shows complaining they havnt seen a dime of help.One poster is talking about ONE gas station being able to open? well where was your beloved country?where was BUSH and his cohorts?i bet he has GAS and a full stomach every night of the week.
I think SOE is a flagship for whiners to place unjust blame on anything that bothers them.There is much larger fish to fry in your own back yards ,but most tend to turn the other cheek and blame a gaming company? lmao.Wasn't that school shooting also blamed on a game?i think they blamed WOW or something stupid.Typical of so many ,blame something or someone else.
I see more slandering of SOE on this topic when really it shouild be all PRAISe than i saw ,in the WOW topic when there was mass killing of players that setup up a funeral or something along that lines in WOW.They were basically setting up a day of mourning/a show of respect to a player that passed away in real life,but where was the BLIZZARD bashing?They reported to blizzard ,but they couldn't care less about a person who passed away in real life,they figured it didn't belong in there game.What do you think is more important to someone who has lost a family member or close friend,15$ a mnth? or a show of respect for the person who passed away?
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
I don't get it.. None of the above is in any way the fault or responsibility of SOE. Are you hinting, in the quote above, that because you were not fully recovered when you first signed into SWG that SOE somehow owes you $$ or have reneged on their promise?
It was truly awful what happened to you and everyone affected by Katrina, but I cannot sympathise with you on this particular issue regarding SOE's offer and YOUR misinterpretation of that offer.
I don't get it.. None of the above is in any way the fault or responsibility of SOE. Are you hinting, in the quote above, that because you were not fully recovered when you first signed into SWG that SOE somehow owes you $$ or have reneged on their promise?
It was truly awful what happened to you and everyone affected by Katrina, but I cannot sympathise with you on this particular issue regarding SOE's offer and YOUR misinterpretation of that offer.
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
I think at this point it's worth highlighting the sentence from your earlier post....Well, they state clearly in the press release that they suspended billing, nothing more, nothing less. It was the right thing to do, but of course their PR department is gonna spin it in their favor. Since videogames are not a necessity, I personally don't think SOE is evil for reactivating billing when folks were back on their feet to the extent where they had time to log into a game and play. They'd have been evil if they continued to charge people monthly subs when they were displaced and homeless. Again, they're a faceless multinational corporation, not a bunch of Franciscan monks.
"There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game!"
Now, even with all the statements at hand you still assumed that (like most of us) SOE had given the effected people in that region 2 years free subs. You made that assumption, I made that assumption so I I'm pretty sure a lot of people made the same assumption and why? Because it was very, very poorly worded. Whether that's down to a limited grasp of the English language or because it was intended to be read in that manner as to mislead people into thinking that SOE were being more generous than they actually were... well, that's for you to decide yourself, my mind was made up on such matters a very long time ago.
...The spread of secondary and latterly of tertiary education has created a large population of people, often with well developed literary and scholarly tastes, who have been educated far beyond their capacity to undertake analytical thought.
I take back the good things I said about the SOE Katrina situation.
My impression was, very clearly, that SOE had suspended billing regardless of online status for those affected by Katrina, in recognition of the hardships they were enduring.
That impression, obviously, was incorrect.
Now we find that this was indeed another cynical stunt by SOE to appear to be compassionate.
CH, Jedi, Commando, Smuggler, BH, Scout, Doctor, Chef, BE...yeah, lots of SWG time invested.
Once a denizen of Ahazi
My sympathies for you and your family.
It clearly says in their message that billing is only being suspended. It does not say you are getting free subscription. Actually, SOE, probably just saved themselve a lot of hassles by doing that. They did indeed try to put a positive spin on something that was actually saving their asses from lawsuits. They didn't say they were giving anyone free playing time. I'm know that's not what you wanted to hear.
SOE customer service does suck, and so do their games.
You played so you payed. If you were realy in desperate times you shouldnt be playing a game. It doesnt say that your sub is free, and since nobody got a free sub you dont have anything to argue
Note that in game ALL maintenance on housing was suspened for months for ALL players due to Katrina. The implication was, we're doing the same for those who were in the disaster area in real life. This was, to me, very clearly what SOE was communicating to the public at large...look how compassionate, how considerate we are of the hurricane victims. We're giving them escapism from their plight out of the goodness of our hearts.
But, alas, the PR campaign met the corporate bottom line, and we see who wins.
Turns out SOE isn't nearly as compassionate as they'd like us to believe.
CH, Jedi, Commando, Smuggler, BH, Scout, Doctor, Chef, BE...yeah, lots of SWG time invested.
Once a denizen of Ahazi
Ysa know, this thread is an excellent example of the depth of idiocy amongst gamers today, as well as a demonstration of people seeing what they want to see. The post by Sony was very clear in stating that peoples fees would be "suspended" until such time as they were able to play again. Anyone who sees "I get to play for free" from that is either incapable of reading, or is intentionally not reading that segment of the posting by SOE. Again, I am no fan of SOE's online services, and do not play any of their games, but I am not going to rally behind the march against them with people who are so obviously clueless. All of the information has been presented in this thread to very clearly show the facts contrary to the OP's position.
All of that understood, it occurs to me that if Sony HAD indeed posted something to the effect of "We are sorry for the affected individuals and victims of Katrina and are allowing them ot play for free for two years" or whatever, however you wish to spin it... instead of THIS thread, we would be seeing all of the haters and hangers on protesting vehemently about a marketing ploy on the part of Sony due to insensitivity of their company. Something to the effect of "Look at those Sony bastards! People are in a time of crisis, and all they can think of is not losing their numbers so are giving them free time to play a game when they should really be focusing on rebuilding their lives and creating a future for their families." Really people, get over it. We understand that you are haters of SOE, and I personally can understand why a lot of you would be, and will refuse to play their games. But jumping on every opportunity to trash talk SOE does nothing for you but make you look like idiots and/or whiners looking for another chance to spout hate or dischord. Time to get a new hobby. I would suggest picking up a video game, but... yeah.
i would have to agree with the majority here...while i am sorry you suffered, SOE did say in very simple language that the billing was suspended until you were able to play again. It says no where that you would get 2 free years, nor that you would get to play for free.
Alrighty, reread my initial post.
I was without the game as per SOE records from Katrina til the end of October.
During that time period I was billed all the way until September 2007.
My wife was not logged into the game longer than that. at least another month, she was still billed.
Using the URL website archive (see previous posts), SOE only left the "suspended billing" up for less than one month after they offered it. With only 1 month notice when players were without communications or power for 2 months or more how are they suppose to know billing was Supposed to be suspended?
As I said earlier, the minute I found out that we were suppose to receive "suspended billing" I contacted SOE. Did they credit my account or my wife's? No. They offered 30 days each extensions... hardly what they told the public SOE was giving Katrina Victims.
I pressed my case further with SOE, Lyman looked further into the matter and noticed it was 2 months before I logged on, he changed the offer to 60 days and said billing as to resume once "a" character was logged into the game. I can live with that.
I asked SOE to check my wife's history since I know she had not played longer than I had.
SOE comes back saying, billing resumes when "A" player is logged into SWG OR if something is purchased from SOE, your wife purchased Trials of Obi-Wan. After 2 months of boredom, no outside contact or much of anything, that was the ONLY luxury she purchased.
Again and again and again, SOE changes their policy.
1st Suspended Billing until Katrina Victims Recover.
2nd Suspended Billing until "A" player is logged in.
3rd Suspended Billing until "A" player is logged in OR SOE sells you something.
Nice the way they change their story each and everytime I talk to SOE CS.
I have had no problems with game play, was never much on combat, I cannot stand the Customer Support System SOE has.
Loved the game at first, then was indifferent with CU and NGE... but all the while, the CS has got to be the worst I have EVER had to deal with. If they were a comic book character it would have to be TWO-FACE from Batman, hands down.
If SOE claimed tax deductions for suspending my wife's and I's account during Katrina and still billed us, that is Tax Fraud.
That is stealing tax money from the public for schools, roads and improvements. It is not just hurting the players they were suppose to help, it is hurting the community they are suppose to be paying taxes to, and IF they claimed it and billed(which I know the billed, my wife and I have the statements). then SOE lied to the IRS.
Now if a company is going to "give" something as charity, you bet they are gonna claim it as a tax write off.
If you do not stand-up for what you believe in... No one else will.
BBB=Useless see why:
http://www.sandiego.bbb.org/sponsors/major.html
Quit the paranoia people. There is nothing weaselly about SOE giving loyal customers who were down and out after a natural disaster a two year free sub to a freakin' game! Look around, EVERY corporation pats themselves on the backs for any sort of remotely charitable work they've done. That's why these huge corporations HAVE PR departments. Tooting their own horn about it doesn't discredit what they did. And besides, it is a very nice gesture, but it's not like they're Habitat for Humanity rebuilding houses impacted by Katrina.
You made the assumption everyone else made right there. They gave everyone effected by Katrina, 2 years free subs, how could they possibly be berated for that? What great PR!
What they actually did was cancel the debits from the subscribers accounts until they logged on. So, for example, if your house was decimated, you were made homeless but managed to pop onto a friends or relatives pc in the interim to log onto SWG to let everyone know you were ok they recommenced the billing. So yeah, it's a great gesture if they actually carried through as their PR department decided to spin it. Unfortunately they didn't and they deserve every bit of flack they get for it.
"For the two years that have followed, the accounts of the affected SOE gamers have not been billed but have been preserved. Beginning on Monday, September 17th, the accounts for these 13,000 SOE gamers will resume the normal billing processes."
When I read this announcement I got the impression that billing had been suspended for 2 years for customers that were directly impacted by Katrina. It sounded like SOE thought that 2 years was a long enough recovery time, and now billing will resume. That sounds really nice. According to the OP, however, the actual details of what SOE was doing seem to paint a very different picture. The announcement doesn't say anything at all about billing being resumed at log in, or if you purchase anything from SOE. If that's what actually happened, then that's what SOE should say they did. The announcement makes it sound like billing was halted for 2 years for Katrina victims, period. That sounds very humanitarian, but evidently is not what was done. If SOE wanted to brag about something, for goodness sake just brag about what you actually did. Don't make it sound so much better than it really was.
No, if SOE said they suspended billing until Katrina survivors were able to once again log in, I would have thought they at least did the right thing. They didn't say this in their announcement though. The P.R. and the actual details are incongruent in this regard.
I'll also add that I think it's unnecessary to refer to others as idiots/whiners. I assumed initially that this was some kind of verbal bullying on your part, but maybe you're just frustrated by people who see things from a different perspective. I dunno, anyways, my point is that I would acknowledge it if SOE did something helpful, but their P.R. statement doesn't seem to match what they really did. And, name calling bugs me.