Reader voices: subscription scams

Magazine subscriptions have always been something of a racket, but they seem to getting worse both in scope and in the depth of their sheer fraudulent nastiness. But does the blame for this sorry state of affairs belong to the magazine publishers themselves, or does it perhaps lie elsewhere?

The magazine publisher we've heard the most

By Ed Foster

The third-party subscription sellers may or may not be under the control of the magazine publisher. "It goes beyond tech magazines," wrote another reader. "The monthly magazine Harper's has a subscriber alert warning in every issue and on their web site that states: 'It has come to our attention that several of our subscribers have received renewal notifications from an independent magazine clearinghouse doing business under the names Magazine Billing Services, Publishers Processing Services Inc., and American Consumer Publish Assoc. These companies have not been authorized to sell subscriptions on behalf of Harper's Magazine. We are making efforts to locate each of these companies, but unfortunately they are difficult to find.'"

Then again, maybe it's all Google's fault. As we've discussed, publications of all kinds are hurting for revenues in part because Google and others who don't produce the content themselves now get such a big cut of the ad revenue pie. As one reader who is getting really frustrated with the click-here-or-wait-15-seconds pop-up ads noted, this is obstructing the Internet for everyone. "I realize the newspapers and magazines have to make money somehow, but can't they and Google work out some kind of deal?" he wondered. "It's in nobody's interest if we all quit using the Internet because we can't get through to any real content."

But some readers think the problem has another source. "We are receiving many bills or invoices for magazines we have never received or read," wrote one. "We are told to pay this invoice by a date soon approaching. Some of the subscriptions are over $l00 for magazines such as People magazine. We know we have never ordered or signed up for even free issues, but now you not only worry about receiving calls and magazines not solicited but being reported to your credit agency and paying for the rest of your life for this type of fraud. It is shame credit bureaus have become so powerful, but when you try to prove something and are successful, it comes back three months later like it was never resolved. We have been through this before and it doesn't seem to matter if you were a victim of a scam or a company made an error. What do consumers do? It would be nice if consumer protective agencies would address this issue with credit bureaus who have way too much power."

So credit report agencies, Google, third-party leeches, or the magazines themselves -- who do you think is to blame for all these magazine subscription scams? Post your comments below or write me at Foster@gripe2ed.com.