YourGamesNow.com April Book Giveaway

[Vanuslux]

I guess that means have it open only to purchases from states with a lottery.

What the State can do and what a business can do are two different things. Just having a lottery in a state doesn't automatically mean businesses are in the clear for that sort of thing.

 

[Bardsandsages]

That's true, but small companies tend to gloss over such things, relying on their small size , because realistically, state attorney generals have other things to do.

Depends on the state. Apparently, Florida has better things to do. But California doesn't. (reading posts here). SMART small companies don't gloss over the law, because unlike large companies they normally can't afford the fines and can't just chalk it up to the cost of doing business. I'm sure there is a way to LEGALLY run the contest, and I think it's a good idea to reward your customers. But there is a tendency in our industry for people to not run their businesses like businesses, and then wonder why they fail.

 

[jgbrowning]

Depends on the state. Apparently, Florida has better things to do. But California doesn't. (reading posts here). SMART small companies don't gloss over the law, because unlike large companies they normally can't afford the fines and can't just chalk it up to the cost of doing business. I'm sure there is a way to LEGALLY run the contest, and I think it's a good idea to reward your customers. But there is a tendency in our industry for people to not run their businesses like businesses, and then wonder why they fail.

If you want to say that yourgamesnow.com in neither SMART nor LEGAL and will fail because of this giveaway just come out and say it directly please. Don't beat around the bush and pretend that you are speaking about other companies besides yourgamesnow.com with your post. I hate the passive-aggresive crap that you've done in this thread, Julie. If our government believes we are doing something illegal by having a customer reward progam they can inform us of such and we'll gladly comply with what they want done.

Back on topic, this giveaway is an awesomelly cool thing to do for our customers. We're focused on them, and not on internet lawyer white-knights "protecting" the public from customer appreciation and retention programs that provide them with free gaming material.

I know our customers are looking forward to having a chance of receiving a free physical book just because they bought an electronic product from the mall site that best supports the publishers of the gaming material they are interested in.


Joseph Browning
Your Games Now, LLC.

 

[djdurant]

If our government believes we are doing something illegal by having a customer reward progam they can inform us of such and we'll gladly comply with what they want done.

So, you're willing to something illegal until told not to do something illegal? What do they say...ignorance of the law is no defense...or in this case ignoring the law?

 

[djdurant]

For anyone interested...here is a current list of state AGs, email addresses, and phone numbers.

http://www.naag.org/attorneys_general.php

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

I'm at a bit of a loss to understand why any publisher would want to make a public nuisance of themselves over the possibility that YGN might be giving gamers free product.

 

[Cathix]

I'm at a bit of a loss to understand why any publisher would want to make a public nuisance of themselves over the possibility that YGN might be giving gamers free product.

Because it's a terrible thing to reward one's customers? You've got me.

 

[Bardsandsages]

If you want to say that yourgamesnow.com in neither SMART nor LEGAL and will fail because of this giveaway just come out and say it directly please. Don't beat around the bush and pretend that you are speaking about other companies besides yourgamesnow.com with your post. I hate the passive-aggresive crap that you've done in this thread, Julie. If our government believes we are doing something illegal by having a customer reward progam they can inform us of such and we'll gladly comply with what they want done.

Back on topic, this giveaway is an awesomelly cool thing to do for our customers. We're focused on them, and not on internet lawyer white-knights "protecting" the public from customer appreciation and retention programs that provide them with free gaming material.

I know our customers are looking forward to having a chance of receiving a free physical book just because they bought an electronic product from the mall site that best supports the publishers of the gaming material they are interested in.


Joseph Browning
Your Games Now, LLC.

Sir,

I am not passive aggressive. I am trying to be politically correct. If you want me to be perfectly blunt, I will. This conversation happened last month in the publisher forum at RPGNOW as a potential idea. Several publishers did the research and discovered there were legal ramification for this type of promotion, and the topic was dropped. In fact, in that very thread I made the same general comments as this one. I am not saying anything in this thread that I have not said to other publishers and vendors. I have both privately and publically been very adamant about the lack of business acumen throughout the industry. My comments are not directed at any one person. They are the same comments I have made time and time again in other situations. Too often, people feel it is perfectly acceptable to ignore the law and never consult an attorney. People ask for tax advice in the forums instead of consulting an accountant. People air their dirty laundry in public instead of filing a complaint with the BBB or local consumer affairs. And people use ideas that have been demonstrating to be legally shaky and just say "to hell with it" and do it anyway.

If you feel this was a personally attack, I'm sorry you feel that way. But frankly I am not responsible for your feelings on the matter. I have simply stated what I have stated time and time again in countless threads. If you took it personally, then perhaps you should ask yourself why. I suggest you go back and re-read my comments in the context they were stated. I was replying to someone else's assertion that small businesses can basically ignore the law. This is not true. It bothers me that people constantly put forth this notion that "it isn't illegal until you get caught." THAT is what I was responding to.

 

[Bardsandsages]

I'm at a bit of a loss to understand why any publisher would want to make a public nuisance of themselves over the possibility that YGN might be giving gamers free product.

It is not about free product. I think the concept is perfectly fine, and I encourage rewarding consumers for their loyalty. BUT, these things should be done legally, both to protect the consumers and the business.

 

[Balok the Strange]

I have a few thoughts to add here.

About a year ago, a publisher on RPGNow (Emerald Press to be precise) ran a customer appreciation program called "The 1 in 20 Reward". Basically it worked like this: One out of every 20 purchasers of Emerald Press material would win a free electronic copy of another Emerald Press book. Sadly, EP has since shut down, but at the time no one made even one comment on it or even paid any attention to it at all. How was that program any different than the one YGN is running?

What if the company running the program was based in say Uzbekistan? This is the internet we are dealing with, right? Anyone with a connection can enter the contest, including people where the contest would be illegal. What if the company is based in the US and the winner lives in some country where any form of gambling is illegal and punishable by death; would the company be considered liable for providing an outlet for the winner's habit?

Where exactly is the line drawn in the land of the World Wide Web?