We read a lot of stories about companies doing boneheaded things but rarely do we read anything like what reader Nathanial sent in.
An avid gamer, Nathanial carried his XBOX 360 around to various events, collecting signatures and artwork from members of the gaming community. When his XBOX finally died, he contacted Microsoft to make sure that he could send the console in without having the exterior case replaced or damaged. Microsoft ensured him that his request would not be a problem.
Nathanial included (along with his XBOX) a letter explaining the markings on the case and requesting politely, but firmly, that he receive his original case back.
And he did.
Unfortunately, someone at Microsoft took it upon himself/herself to scrub the exterior of the box until the signatures were completely removed. This just seems spiteful. Trying to picture the person who thought that giving someone’s signed XBOX a bath was an awesome idea makes our brain hurt.
We read complaints for a living and can’t help but wonder why gamers given so little respect by the companies that make such exorbitant profits off of them. The complaints we get are insulting. From retailers who allow their employees to “check out” products before selling them as new, to consoles and games crippled with broken DRM, gamers are consistently treated like children, or worse, criminals by the companies that benefit from their loyalty.
(I say this purely from observation, as I’m not what anyone would call “a gamer.” The vast majority of video games give me motion sickness, to be perfectly frank. I’m quite fond of Lego Star Wars, however.)
Here’s the letter Nathanial sent in with his XBOX:
To whom it may concern:
Enclosed in this package you will find one Xbox 360 console, serial number 610537654806. I pre-ordered this machine months before the Xbox 360 launched, and I’ve been a proud owner ever since it arrived. Although the original warranty for my machine has expired some time ago, I still keep the sales receipt and original retail box.
I have taken this unit along with me on some of my travels over the past two years, and during that time I have acquired a number of signatures from notable members of the gaming community.
Among those signatures are several members of the Rooster Teeth Productions staff, certain members of the Xbox 360 team, and some of the staff from Bungie Studios. Those signatures are also joined by custom artwork by Rooster Teeth Comics artist and Halo fan artist Luke McKay. This console represents some special memories–of which I am quite fond–from the past two years of my life. As you can imagine, this particular unit has a great deal of sentimental value to me and is quite possibly of reasonable monetary value as well.
I am well aware that in many cases new replacement units have been returned to those who have sent their consoles for repairs. I would be displeased if this were to happen to me. When I put in the service request for my unit, the agent that took my call assured me that the same unit I have sent to you would be shipped back to me. If you must send a different unit back, please put my original case on the replacement unit. Having put the above information forward, it is logical to conclude that I would be most disappointed should I receive a different console with a plain white case in return.
Please take care in handling the case, as despite the fact that the ink is permanent and has had plenty of time to set, the possibility yet remains that it may be smudged.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Here’s how he received the box. The few marker smudges that Microsoft failed to eliminate are circled. You can read a more detailed description of the events here.
Another Gamer Screwed by Microsoft [Hawty McBloggy]
More From Consumerist
-
EU Slaps Microsoft With $732M Fine Because Not Everyone Wants To Use Internet Explorer
-
Microsoft Apologizes For Loudmouthed Creative Director’s Tweets
-
Between Microsoft And PayPal, Somewhere I Have A Refund
-
Microsoft Provides Details On Law Enforcement Requests For User Data
-
Microsoft Trying To Get A Grip On Customers’ Online Privacy Concerns With New Campaign
A similar thing happened to me!
I bought a 360 signed by Steve Ballmer at a charity auction ([blog.my-is300.com]), and before i sent mine in for its RROD, i asked if i would get a replacement or a repair. Customer service said it would likely be a replacement, so my wife contacted Mrs. Ballmer about getting another signature if they did a replacement (my wife indirectly works with mrs. ballmer), and she said that she could do that.
When i sent mine in ([blog.my-is300.com]), i taped a note onto the top of it saying that it was a charity auction 360 and to give me back the case without damage if possible.
When i got it back, the top had apparently been washed, so the signature was faded to about half its brightness, but it isn’t gone. I’ll have to take a pic and post that here too.
I’m probably going to have to send it in again (disc read errors), and i’d presume that it would be gone….
@david_consumerist: I agree; I don’t think that’s the original case the OP sent in. Doesn’t matter what cleaner/solvent you use it would be hard to do a near-immaculate job removing both the signatures and the graphics.
Not to blame-the-poster, but anyone else have a funny feeling the letter Nathanial (sp?) sent in explaining the provenance of the signatures,
…might have given someone in Repairs the bright idea to steal the case? I bet someone marked the new case with a few strategic scuffs corresponding to some of the signatures to make the owner believe he received a scrubbed version of his old case; after all it’s harder to make a case against Microsoft for “cleaning off ink stains” than stealing memorabilia. I really feel do bad for the guy. Unfortunately I think his strategy backfired. Nathanial, keep a close eye on eBay!
A’ight,
the whole ‘who fucked up’ issue aside (as it seems there’s a concensus), I’m getting really peeved off by all the ‘guy is a nerd/geek/lamer, there’s no value in those signatures’ bullcrap.
If you were a car collector, and if you had a car with personalized signatures of its chassis designer, engine designer or guy who made the custom interior, you bet your scrawny ass you’d consider it worth a ton. Just because initial value of something is measured in hundreds, instead of tens of thousands of dollars, doesn’t make such ‘personalized enhancements’ worth proportionally less – or nothing. Hell, compare it to a record signed by the singer. Oh, suuure, singer is a ‘superstar’ – yeah right. Guy who has crappy education, sings about rape and drive-by shootings and dresses like a moron deserves my reverent adoration, but someone who can produce hardware or software so complex your brains can’t even begin to imagine how it works aren’t?
Wonderful system of values there….
Rant off. Sorry.
i think you would have to be an underage, illegal immigrant worker from mongolia to have to washed this xbox. even then, a spiteful person to see a drawing and think, “ew, this isn’t xbox drawing. me erase for you no charge.”
someone stole this kid’s case, and their planning to sell it.
*they’re planning to sell it.
I still can’t wrap my head around the reason why anyone would buy a 360 in the first place.
The system is a bloody lemon. Breaking down has become a standard feature. Maybe I’m just old in my 28 years on this Earth, but I remember a time when this kind of shit wouldn’t fly.
Did you bother to read the comments posted in the original newspost on this topic by a real Microsoft repair employee?
While he admitted that he was only a lackey and had very little control or oversight of anything, he *did* mention that all repairs for North America are serviced by a third-party contractor in Mexico.
He further added that it was standard operating procedure to clean consoles TWICE when they are being repaired, otherwise whiny consumers might complain about their console being returned dirty.
If you’re working in a Mexican hell-hole and don’t speak or understand English, you’re not going to be able to comprehend the carefully-written note, and may not realize the sentimental value of the artwork and signatures.
Granted, it seems like common sense, but even if the worker IS aware of the value, do you honestly believe he could afford the time it would take to seek approval to skip washing just this one case amongst a sea of assembly line protocol and quotas? It’s much easier to establish a blanket policy that applies to everything, asinine as that may be.
The only one who was truly wrong here was the person who assured him his console would be okay. And even then, how clear was he with his choice of words? If he asked to receive the same unit back in mint condition, not a replacement, the customer service rep could confidently and accurately assure that!
What happened sucks. I’m not fighting that, I don’t think anyone else is. My heart goes out to the guy for losing some priceless memories, regardless of the circumstances. I just feel a lot of the hate here is completely misdirected.
“Sorry, but I thought you ordered the ‘Supreme Car Wash,’ which includes interior detailing and new-car spritzing, tire dressing, and hand-buffed waxing…”
Did anyone bother to read what was actually written on the case? I know I’m going to get the “don’t blame the victim” reponse here but I guess I don’t care in this case. Once comment on there was “XBOX360? More like three shitsty” and the other said something like “don’t write too much on me or I might overheat”. I don’t think the Microsoft employee who erased this stuff was right to do so, but I also don’t think it’s right or a good idea to send in a product to a company with insults of their products scrawled all over them. Based on all the reports, these comments are probably deserved, but it’s still rude to send them directly to employees of the company who are trying to help you.
It’s not very difficult to get sharpie off most surfaces if you have the proper solvents. I got a couple cans of stuff at home here that’s meant for softening old rubber rollers on laser printers. It’ll remove any type of ink that it comes into contact with. Haven’t found anything it can’t cut through. It also won’t do a darn thing to paint.
I say Microsoft owes him something awesome for this mistake. I’m sure once Burnie and the gang at RoosterTeeth hear about this they’ll probably want to do something as well as the folks at Bungie.
Wow, Microsoft — you people are assholes! I can’t think of a more petty way for you to express your disdain for your customers than this, unless you start including the phrase “fuck you” in your official literature. Food for thought though, eh? Just make sure to credit me when you do it.
A magic eraser will take marker off no problem.
I think he should get in touch with the more important people who signed his case and tell them “man, I was really excited when you signed my case, it was so great, but now it’s been scrubbed off…”
See if maybe some higher-ups at Bungie throwing a massive fit would get some results.
The main problem is in this matter is to where the 360 was sent to. If like mine, was sent to McAllen, Texas, then it could have been a communication breakdown, since 90% of McAllen is Spanish/Mexican-American and most people speak English as a second language, if at all. So the person who cleaned the system may have thought they were following instructions because he/she is illiterate, or that their basic English is so terrible that they read it wrong. This is in no way an excuse for this action, and is just yet another example on how stupid Texans are.
Gamer, this is Spray Paint Clear Coat Sealer.
Spray Paint Clear Coat Sealer, this is Gamer.
You two should get to know each other.
But I digress, seeing how it was not just a pen mark, but a drawn and signed box, why would someone erase it.
@everyone wondering about pen remover products, I don’t work for them, and I don’t know how it would work on an xbox, but Amodex makes one helluva ink remover: [www.amodexink.com]
Got a referral to them from Uniball when one too many pens went through the laundry and it works.
a bit of WD-40 works wonders on magic marker, especially on a non-porous surface. Just spray some on, and let it sit for about 20 minutes, then wipe away. Sometimes it can take a few applications of WD-40, but it gets the job done. . . I know this because long ago I got the fun task of cleaning up after my little sister who decided to take my permanent marker and draw all over the walls…
I think it’s pretty stupid that they decided to scrub it enough to remove (completely at that) permanet ink from it. Another reason for me to hate microsoft.
@TreyTable: Lets not get into any Texas hatred. It being it TX does not have anything to do with the situation & there are many TX readers, all well educated might I add, that might take offense to that comment. Besides, if you haven’t lived in McAllen, TX how would you know what the Spanish to English ratio is? Now, back on topic.
Just for purpose of comparison: Back in 1994, I had a red L.L. Bean backpack. I’d carried this backpack through four years of junior high school and three years of high school, and it was covered in tons of permanent marker signatures, drawings, etc.
Well, the zippers gave out. L.L. Bean has (or had at the time) a lifetime warranty on their products, so I mailed it back to them. I included a note that the backpack MUST NOT BE REPLACED and that I’d rather have the old busted one back if they couldn’t fix it.
Well, L.L. Bean replaced the zippers — and some of the stitching! — on the old backpack, mailed it back to me, and then MAILED ME A CHECK FOR THE POSTAGE IT COST ME TO MAIL IT TO THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE.
THAT is customer service! I still have that backpack today.
As a Valkyrie Profile otaku, if I had a specially designed PS2 for a game I loved, and it died, I would NOT trust anyone to fix it. That sucker would get shelved, displayed, and a new unit would be purchased to PLAY the games. The risk for stupidity is too great in our society today.
I bet the inked comments ‘I might overheat’ and ‘more like three-shitsty!’ are what caused his system to get scrubbed. Either that, or the repair technician never read his attached letter.
In any case, it’s a shitty thing someone at MS’s repair center did. MS should give the gut a new Halo or Elite edition with some big name signatures as a token of good faith. Hope he CCed links of both blog topics to billg@microsoft.com I’m sure his assistant would love to pass this story onto him.
@Jaysyn: Yea, and so will the acetone fumes.
I highly doubt if the case he received (back) is the one he sent in. Why the shit photo quality otherwise?
I cant see why anyone would out of the blue decide to “clean” it. Its not like it was dirt or paint splatter that may have accidentally got on the console. Its obvious to anyone with a sliver of a brain that the artwork and sigs were there for a reason. It was probably just stolen, with the thief doctoring up a panel to look like it was cleaned.
As for comments about value, what you may consider important or rare or a collector’s item I may consider trash as I may not be into the same things you are. You might have a mint condition copy of superman’s first appearance nicely polybagged with an acid free backer board and all I’ll see is some reading material to roll up and take into the crapper.
Geez, I’m sorry but something of that much value SHOULD NOT have been sent to any company.
It’s like mailing in your bank card with the pin number for replacement and expecting a lowly minimum wage drone to not have a field day at your expense with it.
Was the cost of a NEW XBOX more expensive than the artwork?
Did he REALLY expect Micro$natch to follow his instructions and comply with his request? If you call in to customer service and present your issue to the rep and they tell you that you are in good hands, you better damn well near have the conversation recorded, their first and last name, employee id, name of their supervisor and the name of the call center they work out of.
I kind of get the feeling the unit was received in a factory where service technicians are most likely told to discard anything other than the product. Heck, I wouldn’t even be surprised if someone that doesn’t speak or read English saw the letter and threw it in the trash.