Best Buy: Sorry We Lied (But Thanks for Your Money)

It’s only proper that Best Buy President Brian Dunn wrote a letter of apology to customers about the launch of the Xbox 360. We cannot find one to purchase anywhere, for which Best Buy is clearly to blame. We are fairly certain that they were behind that whole Bay of Pigs thing, too. But that is not why President Dunn is apologizing.

Specifically, customers in some Best Buy stores were told that they were required to buy additional Xbox accessories or services if they wanted one of the sought-after Xbox 360 consoles, even though we advertised the Xbox 360 console alone. I want to be very clear that Best Buy does not condone pressuring customers to purchase items they may not want or that may not fit their lifestyle. In fact, these behaviors are in direct conflict with our desire to serve customers
needs better than anyone else, and our values of honesty and integrity.

“That’s why in the future, Best Buy employees will only pressure customers to purchase expensive, unnecessary Product Service Plans, because the margins on those are crazy good. Seriously, it’s just a little paper pamphlet.”

We applaud Dunn’s decision to admit to the fuck up, but the actions of the employees towards Xbox purchasers wasn’t an aberration—it was an extension of the same heavy-handed sales tactics they were taught to use in the first place.

Bonus link: Best Buy Hoarding Xbox 360s for Sale [Kotaku]

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