Make no mistake: We think that Sprint refusing to help freaked out parents locate their carjacked baby is awful. Whether Sprint’s policy states that customers need to pay a $25 fee to subpoena the information or not, an exception should probably have been made. (Sprint has stated that emergency procedure was not followed.)
evil
Latest iTunes Dials Home Without Your Permission
By 1.11.06
We don’t mind it when software dials back home to its creator company—we mind when it does so without asking. Apparently the newest version of iTunes (6.0.2) includes a ‘Mini-Store’ pane which sends information about the current song you are listening to back to Apple (via a company called ‘Omniture’) so they can push suggested albums or songs based on your existing collection. Readers of Boing Boing have determined that turning off the Mini-Store does deactivate the behavior, but it’s something of which you should be aware.
Postal Workers Busted Stealing Netflix DVDs
By 1.9.06
Colorado police have charged two postal workers for plucking out Netflix DVDs from the mail.
According to court records, between January and March of 2005, 503 Netflix DVD movies destined for Lyons, Colorado were reported missing or stolen. Netflix told investigators the loss represents 23.33 percent of all DVD movies mailed to that postal area.
Any Netflix subscriber has probably had a movie or two go missing over the course of their subscription. We wonder if disc theft is far more widespread than Netflix would like to acknowledge.
From the ‘Get What You Ask For’ Files
By 12.27.05
In fairness, peace on earth would totally obviate that iPod U2 Edition. Sunday, Pleasant Sunday.
Sony Style Stores Still Selling Rootkit CDs
By 12.23.05
I asked the manager about this and they said they were, and I quote, “still allowed to sell them”.
How Verizon Stole Christmas
By 12.22.05
Verizon does something evil? Surely not our sweet, beatific megacorp! Yet that is the claim levied by the wicked town of Lonaconing, Maryland, whose annual Christmas lights were banned—for safety’s sake—by Verizon. Each year Lonaconing’s Christmas Light Decoration Committee would string their vine-like lights across the same poles used by Allegheny Power and Verizon to provide light and warmth to hundreds of poor children in the coal town.
”If a wire is hanging at 15 feet, a truck could snag it. It could snap a pole, and someone could get seriously injured,” Verizon spokeswoman Sandra Arnette said. ”We never said the town should not hang the lights. But safety is the first thing.”
The first thing is safety, Lonaconing, not your vile, pagan celebration! We would wish you coal in every stocking if we did not already imagine it would give your dwarvish children great joy to fondle each sooty treasure betwixt their stumpy mole fingers. And to put an inflatable Grinch balloon next to the Verizon office? Take your idolatry elsewhere, Lonaconing. We’ll have none of your craven imagery in this, the season of plastic, light-up Jesus.
Staples Charges Per-File Fee to Make Your Copies
By 12.21.05
A pal of head BoingBoinger Mark has stumbled across an unbelievable $2.49 per file ‘virus scanning’ charge levied by Staples when customers bring in documents to be printed. Another former Staples employee writes in to say that the fee is more of a document handling type of thing, with an initial $2.49 plus $99 per file charge, just because it’s more of a pain to deal with files than to copy something from paper to paper.
Bank Bans Clocks to Confuse Customers
By 12.14.05
If we were the gnarlled toothed ogres who work at NatWest bank, we would call removing all clocks from the public waiting areas a ‘customer hack.’ Rather than work to shorten the lines of customers at NatWest, bank managers have chosen to instead remove all timepieces from the walls.
One worker said: “If people have been standing waiting to see a cashier for a long time they can get very cross.
Best Buy Faces Discrimination Suit
By 12.9.05
Poor Best Buy. Just after their president was forced to eat crow about forced bundling of Xbox 360 accessories, they must now face down allegations of discrimination by current and former employees. They allege that women and minorities were excluded from the good jobs in a corporate culture that catered to pasty, white men.
“I was told by several managers that I didn’t need to be on the sales floor. I was told females can’t sell,” Chappel, 48, told reporters at a news conference.
When we were young and worked for Best Buy one cold holiday season, our store manager (in fact, much of the upper management) was a mix of mostly minorities and women.
Best Buy: Sorry We Lied (But Thanks for Your Money)
By 12.8.05
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.”
H&M’s Stella McCartney Collection: Cheap Clothes You Can’t Have
By 11.28.05
H&M is the latest of the bargain clothing retailers to play the ‘limited edition’ game. A recent collection by Stella McCartney sold out at H&M hours after its debut—with no plans for restocking. It’s not the first time H&M has played the game: A collection last year by Karl Lagerfeld was also snapped up in hours.
De Beers Diamonds Now Only 74% Evil
By 11.9.05
South African diamond cartel De Beers has announced that it will be transferring a 26% share of its mining operation, De Beers Consolidated Mines, into a holding company that is half-owned by De Beers employees and pensioners. (Which we suppose could be mathed out to mean they are still 85% evil, depending on who owns the other half of the holding company.)
Wal-Mart: The Movie
By 11.8.05
Detailing the means through which the Arkansas giant continues its retail dominance, WAL-MART: The High Cost of Low Price is now in wide community screening and available for purchase online. We haven’t seen it yet, so must reserve judgement, but are intrigued by the website’s promise of sweaty Chinese laborers named Princess.
Amazon Wants Fingers in Your Bank Account
By 11.8.05
Amazon is asking its customers to reenter their credit card information today in an attempt to encourage participation in its new Pay Directly From Your Bank Account option. Skipping the credit card companies will save Amazon the transaction fees, but how will it help you?
