MobileRead Forums
Register Guidelines E-Books Today's Posts Search

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book General > Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links)
Reload this Page Sony Bookstore-false ad for free ebooks

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 12-12-2008, 09:37 PM   #1
Elfwreck
Grand Sorcerer
Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Elfwreck's Avatar
 
Posts: 5,185
Karma: 25133758
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA
Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3 (Past: Kobo Mini, PEZ, PRS-505, Clié)
Sony Bookstore-false ad for free ebooks
When I open the eBook store in the Sony library, I see an ad that says on the left:
Quote:
at this most magical time of the year, enjoy the gift of cool ghosts and hot vampires
On the right, there's a box that says:
Quote:
Free downloads from
Carole Nelson Douglas
Maria Lima
Fantasy magazine
Weird Tales
& more!
Search for Carole Nelson Douglas: 4 books, none of them free.
Maria Lima: 1 book, not free.
Fantasy Magazine: 2008 Sampler is free.
Weird Tales: Nothing named "weird tales" is free, but the search turns up the Fantasy Magazine Sampler.

Erm. In a brick-and-mortar store, if there were a sign saying "Free books from [author]", they'd be legally required to provide them for as long as they have the sign up. (Unless the sign says "Until Dec 8th" or whatever.)

Am planning on calling customer service to find out what free downloads from Carole Nelson Douglas & Maria Lima they're talking about.
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version Name: SonyBookstore_Ad 12-12-08.PNG Views: 262 Size: 69.3 KB ID: 19121  
Elfwreck is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-12-2008, 10:32 PM   #2
Elfwreck
Grand Sorcerer
Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Elfwreck ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Elfwreck's Avatar
 
Posts: 5,185
Karma: 25133758
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA
Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3 (Past: Kobo Mini, PEZ, PRS-505, Clié)
Followup
After 20 minutes on hold I got through to customer support.

It turns out the free downloads are offered in phases, one at a time. He apologizes for the ad having no mention of this whatsoever, and offers to send me an email notifying me when the books change.

I am... fascinated by this.
I rarely see blatant and obvious false advertising; it's usually something that takes squinting through the terms, or some kind of interpretation. Not used to, "Free Downloads" followed by, "and by free, we mean 'pay full price'."
Elfwreck is offline   Reply With Quote
Advert
Old 12-13-2008, 07:42 AM   #3
Dr. Drib
Grand Sorcerer
Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dr. Drib ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Dr. Drib's Avatar
 
Posts: 44,743
Karma: 55645321
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Peru
Device: Kindle: Oasis 3, Voyage WiFi; Kobo: Libra 2, Aura One
I noticed that, too, but was happy to find the 12 other books that were NOT advertised that someone pointed out here on MobileRead.

At the very least, they should amend the ad copy to say something about these authors' free books being "phased" in.

Otherwise, it continues to be misleading advertising, in my opinion.


Don
Dr. Drib is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

« Previous Thread | Next Thread »

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
New free Kindle ebooks and free Sony ePub ebooks AdamV Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 10 09-03-2010 09:19 PM
Free Sony eBooks 6/4 skyfish Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 11 06-09-2009 02:39 PM
7 Free Ebooks on Sony? tgr131 Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 3 01-08-2009 09:29 PM
Another 10 free classic eBooks from Sony DaveNB Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 2 11-10-2008 07:33 PM
'Diesel eBooks' bookstore opens - 20% discount Colin Dunstan Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) 0 11-12-2004 01:40 PM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 01:34 AM.

Contact Us - FAQ - Guidelines - Privacy - Top

MobileRead.com is a privately owned, operated and funded community.