Kobo = Very poor customer service!

Skydog · 03-10-2010, 02:09 PM

This past weekend I purchased two ePub titles from kobobooks.com and was surprised to discover that one of them was completely blank. One blank white page displayed in ADE, along with a blank white space in lieu of the usual cover art.

Since then, I have emailed Kobo three times describing the problem and lack of a valid book. I even included a snapshot of my computer display illustrating the blank book in ADE.

To date I have not received any response, not one word of communication, which I find completely unacceptable. They do not even publish a telephone number. (I now know why)

Undoubtedly, I am in a minority when it comes to downloading invalid ebooks (a first for me) and these things happen. But it is the customer service, or lack thereof, that makes all the difference in a situation of this sort.

Many love to criticize Amazon, but they have excellent customer service with people available "live" 24/7 to resolve problems immediately.

Buyer beware.

O.k., I feel better now

/vent off

JSWolf · 03-10-2010, 02:17 PM

Here is the information you've been looking for...

Registrant:
Indigo Books and Music Inc.

468 King St West
Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8
Canada

Registered through: GoDaddy.com, Inc. (http://www.godaddy.com)
Domain Name: KOBOBOOKS.COM
Created on: 06-Aug-09
Expires on: 06-Aug-11
Last Updated on: 01-Dec-09

Administrative Contact:
Galperin, Dan dan@shortcovers.com
Indigo Books and Music Inc.
468 King St West
Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8
Canada
416-977-8737

Technical Contact:
Galperin, Dan dan@shortcovers.com
Indigo Books and Music Inc.
468 King St West
Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8
Canada
416-977-8737

Skydog · 03-10-2010, 02:32 PM

Jon,

Excellent! Many thanks for your efforts. I got as far as Indigo, but my skills are not up to yours and never did find a phone number. If I don't hear anything today, I will attempt to reach someone by phone.

Regards,

Pat

P.S. Love your new avatar

zhuxi13 · 03-10-2010, 02:32 PM

Just to let you know that it happened to me about a week ago and I heard back from them in two days. I got a refund without any hassles.

It is annoying, but they will sort it out. I remember them saying that they had checked with the publisher and were not sure when they would get another copy, maybe they are seeing if they can fix it...

Nakor · 03-10-2010, 03:14 PM

I had a similar hard time with getting a DRM'd ePub off Kobo to work; ADE would download it partly, then fail to 'verify' it, and the ePub wouldn't open (it was corrupted or something). In the end I was actually able to download them properly using Sony's library software instead of Adobe Digital Editions. Might be worth a try?

Regardless, here's hoping they fix this up for you sooner than later.

JSWolf · 03-10-2010, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nakor

I had a similar hard time with getting a DRM'd ePub off Kobo to work; ADE would download it partly, then fail to 'verify' it, and the ePub wouldn't open (it was corrupted or something). In the end I was actually able to download them properly using Sony's library software instead of Adobe Digital Editions. Might be worth a try?

Regardless, here's hoping they fix this up for you sooner than later.

I did have a problem with an eBook from Simon & Schuster's web site. ADE didn't keep a copy when it had a problem with the DRM not allowing it to be viewed. Reader Library did keep a copy. I was then able to strip the DRM. The book was a real mess. It was awful. The CSS was a mess. I had to clean that up so it displayed as it should have and then I was able to fix it to display how I wanted it.

If you strip the DRM from these Kobo books, maybe you can see what's wrong and fix it if it's fixable.

JSWolf · 03-10-2010, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skydog

Jon,

Excellent! Many thanks for your efforts. I got as far as Indigo, but my skills are not up to yours and never did find a phone number. If I don't hear anything today, I will attempt to reach someone by phone.

Regards,

Pat

P.S. Love your new avatar

I tried a web search to find the phone number and that failed. Then I got the idea to try looking up who owns the DNS via Go Daddy and I was able to get the info you see posted.

And thanks about the avatar. I have one to go with it for the next one. I think you'll like that one too.

Skydog · 03-10-2010, 07:59 PM

It is comforting to know that others have had similar file problems as well. Certainly it is bound to happen, particularly for those of us who download many books.

Yes, it will be sorted out eventually but my point in posting (and complaining) is that the vendor should be prepared to resolve such issues quickly and, at the very least, respond to the customer ASAP but, absent an advertised phone number, that apparently is a low priority. The customer should not be the one wasting their time and jumping through hoops.

(and there went a perfectly good coupon down the drain)

Happy reading!

JSWolf · 03-10-2010, 08:40 PM

Have you tried stripping the DRM and fixing the eBook?

Skydog · 03-10-2010, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Have you tried stripping the DRM and fixing the eBook?

Jon,

Yes, that's the first thing I did but nothing appears in ADE or Sigil.

I suspect something has corrupted the file (or a portion of it is missing) and the publisher will have to supply another.

JSWolf · 03-10-2010, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skydog

Jon,

Yes, that's the first thing I did but nothing appears in ADE or Sigil.

I suspect something has corrupted the file and the publisher will have to supply another.

I recently had to fix an ePub I made that had a broken <br /<br />. All that would show up is the chapter title. So maybe something is broken that's preventing ADE from displaying as ADE can be picky.

Skydog · 03-10-2010, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I recently had to fix an ePub I made that had a broken <br /<br />. All that would show up is the chapter title. So maybe something is broken that's preventing ADE from displaying as ADE can be picky.

Well, that makes perfect sense to me. I am still a novice when it comes to ePubs and am rapidly learning thanks to you and everyone here on MR. I wish I had a better knowledge of HTML and CSS's than that of a n00b.

When I find some time, I'll have a second look at it in Sigil and actually scroll through the whole thing to see if it is actually all blank.

Thanks very much!

pedgarcia · 03-11-2010, 04:50 PM

I've used their support a couple of times through the form at http://kobo.zendesk.com/requests/anonymous/new.

Both times I've received a very quick answer. Maybe I was lucky, or you unlucky...

Regards

Paulo

Minglewood · 03-11-2010, 06:25 PM

Thanks for offering the pros and cons on this topic.I've ordered from Kobo a few times with no incident. Sure hope it stays that way.

MickeyC · 03-11-2010, 08:54 PM

I've had nothing but good service from Kobo. They've responded fast and, in every case, solved my problem. Mind you, I've only had a couple

03-10-2010, 02:09 PM	#1
Skydog Wizard Posts: 2,286 Karma: 7409537 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Circling Earth @ Mach .83 Device: Elipsa 2E, Sage, Libra Colour, Libra 2, Clara 2E, Oasis3, Voyage	Kobo = Very poor customer service! This past weekend I purchased two ePub titles from kobobooks.com and was surprised to discover that one of them was completely blank. One blank white page displayed in ADE, along with a blank white space in lieu of the usual cover art. Since then, I have emailed Kobo three times describing the problem and lack of a valid book. I even included a snapshot of my computer display illustrating the blank book in ADE. To date I have not received any response, not one word of communication, which I find completely unacceptable. They do not even publish a telephone number. (I now know why) Undoubtedly, I am in a minority when it comes to downloading invalid ebooks (a first for me) and these things happen. But it is the customer service, or lack thereof, that makes all the difference in a situation of this sort. Many love to criticize Amazon, but they have excellent customer service with people available "live" 24/7 to resolve problems immediately. Buyer beware. O.k., I feel better now /vent off

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03-10-2010, 02:17 PM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 80,782 Karma: 150249619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Here is the information you've been looking for... Registrant: Indigo Books and Music Inc. 468 King St West Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8 Canada Registered through: GoDaddy.com, Inc. (http://www.godaddy.com) Domain Name: KOBOBOOKS.COM Created on: 06-Aug-09 Expires on: 06-Aug-11 Last Updated on: 01-Dec-09 Administrative Contact: Galperin, Dan dan@shortcovers.com Indigo Books and Music Inc. 468 King St West Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8 Canada 416-977-8737 Technical Contact: Galperin, Dan dan@shortcovers.com Indigo Books and Music Inc. 468 King St West Toronto, Ontario M5V1L8 Canada 416-977-8737

03-10-2010, 02:32 PM	#3
Skydog Wizard Posts: 2,286 Karma: 7409537 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Circling Earth @ Mach .83 Device: Elipsa 2E, Sage, Libra Colour, Libra 2, Clara 2E, Oasis3, Voyage	Jon, Excellent! Many thanks for your efforts. I got as far as Indigo, but my skills are not up to yours and never did find a phone number. If I don't hear anything today, I will attempt to reach someone by phone. Regards, Pat P.S. Love your new avatar

03-10-2010, 02:32 PM	#4
zhuxi13 Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: Sony 505?	Just to let you know that it happened to me about a week ago and I heard back from them in two days. I got a refund without any hassles. It is annoying, but they will sort it out. I remember them saying that they had checked with the publisher and were not sure when they would get another copy, maybe they are seeing if they can fix it...

03-10-2010, 03:14 PM	#5
Nakor Addict Posts: 214 Karma: 511602 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: BC, Canada Device: Aluratek Libre	I had a similar hard time with getting a DRM'd ePub off Kobo to work; ADE would download it partly, then fail to 'verify' it, and the ePub wouldn't open (it was corrupted or something). In the end I was actually able to download them properly using Sony's library software instead of Adobe Digital Editions. Might be worth a try? Regardless, here's hoping they fix this up for you sooner than later.

03-10-2010, 07:59 PM	#8
Skydog Wizard Posts: 2,286 Karma: 7409537 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Circling Earth @ Mach .83 Device: Elipsa 2E, Sage, Libra Colour, Libra 2, Clara 2E, Oasis3, Voyage	It is comforting to know that others have had similar file problems as well. Certainly it is bound to happen, particularly for those of us who download many books. Yes, it will be sorted out eventually but my point in posting (and complaining) is that the vendor should be prepared to resolve such issues quickly and, at the very least, respond to the customer ASAP but, absent an advertised phone number, that apparently is a low priority. The customer should not be the one wasting their time and jumping through hoops. (and there went a perfectly good coupon down the drain) Happy reading!

03-10-2010, 08:40 PM	#9
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 80,782 Karma: 150249619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Have you tried stripping the DRM and fixing the eBook?

03-11-2010, 04:50 PM	#13
pedgarcia Connoisseur Posts: 63 Karma: 250 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: PRS-505	I've used their support a couple of times through the form at http://kobo.zendesk.com/requests/anonymous/new. Both times I've received a very quick answer. Maybe I was lucky, or you unlucky... Regards Paulo

03-11-2010, 06:25 PM	#14
Minglewood Member Posts: 11 Karma: 500010 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: New Jersey Device: KOBO Glow	Thanks for offering the pros and cons on this topic.I've ordered from Kobo a few times with no incident. Sure hope it stays that way.

03-11-2010, 08:54 PM	#15
MickeyC Grand Sorcerer Posts: 16,731 Karma: 12185114 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Florida Device: iPhone 6 plus, Sony T1, iPad 3	I've had nothing but good service from Kobo. They've responded fast and, in every case, solved my problem. Mind you, I've only had a couple

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