Comments on: Warning – Big Lots $70 S2DT deal may not be such a deal

By: MegaZone

MegaZone — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 16:24:17 +0000

Well, ‘TiVo Sucks’, since you reminded me of this old post I should say that I have since seen a number of people report that TiVo did honor the rebates on units purchased from Big Lots.

By: Tivo Sucks

Tivo Sucks — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:27:08 +0000

Tivo sucks, they are still pulling this crap screwing over new customers by promising rebates then claiming you don’t qualify because you didn’t purchase from an authorized retailer. They don’t even publish a list of authorized retailers. Tivo you are scumbags!

By: Marc Novakowski

Marc Novakowski — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 22:02:23 +0000

This sounds like a very good deal for Canadians shopping in the US because we aren’t eligible for rebates, anyways. Not to mention the CDN dollar being on-par with USD.

By: HDTiVo

HDTiVo — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 21:01:22 +0000

Why would folks run to buy this unit for $70?

They’ll have to take out the Selling Fast! text soon.

By: Troy

Troy — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 17:03:45 +0000

I did a Google search, and found the cached page from Oct 4, 2007. This URL shows the site WITHOUT the “rebate does not qualify” text. I’m making a printout of this for my records as more ammo for my fight if I get denied.
http://tinyurl.com/3c6xok

By: noluck

noluck — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 16:15:52 +0000

The Big Lots website has been updated. The graphic has a little red banner across it saying “Selling Fast!” and the description has a sentence at the end that states “Manufacturer’s rebate does not apply to this offer.”

http://www.biglots.com/Specials/item.aspx?cid=15&scid=49&iid=2521

So I guess it’s official. Now that doesn’t mean those who bought the TiVo before these clarifications don’t have a leg to stand on when trying to claim the rebate, but people going forward (if they can even find one — I went to 3 Big Lots last week and didn’t find any) won’t have the same excuse. Unfortunately, it’s impossible to sort out who’s who.

By: HDTiVo

HDTiVo — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 04:57:57 +0000

Do you believe Pony? Do you believe the website? Do you believe your rebate got mystiously lost by the rebate shylarks? Do you end up with $80 in your pocket?

Tune in next time…

The problem is the pre-qualification website says that these units qualify. If you enter the info it says youâ€™re OK. And I donâ€™t see a list of â€˜Authorized Retailersâ€™ posted, so there is no easy way for a consumer to know these units wouldnâ€™t qualify.

By: HDTiVo

HDTiVo — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 04:53:38 +0000

Hmmmm….

From 9/25/07 -

http://hdtivo.wordpress.com/2007/09/25/around-the-horn-with-tivo/

While TiVo is offering a $50 S2DT80, (Get an 80-hour S2DT for $49.99) no matter what TiVo does on price, short of giving away lots of money with each box, subscription additions will not be good as long as the ridiculous subscription options remain in place. This comment extends to the hi def TiVoes. TiVo HD will sell somewhat better than S3 did, but TiVoâ€™s growth is at an end after this year unless they change.

By: megazone

megazone — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 00:01:05 +0000

Brian – The problem is the pre-qualification website says that these units qualify. If you enter the info it says you’re OK. And I don’t see a list of ‘Authorized Retailers’ posted, so there is no easy way for a consumer to know these units wouldn’t qualify.

By: Brian

Brian — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 19:12:46 +0000

Compromise isn’t really relevant. Either the device qualifies for the rebate or not. I think the key is that bit about “authorized dealers”. The only way to be sure is to validate eligibility before making a purchase.

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 18:23:10 +0000

I think, as a comprimise, Tivo should just rebate the cost of the DVR (but not exceed it)

Of course legally, they may not be able to do it. . .i.e. if you give anything you have to give all

70 bucks is a decent deal, so don’t be too sad!

By: Troy

Troy — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 21:37:21 +0000

I bought one of these units, fully expecting the rebate. When I had some activation/multi-service questions, I called Customer Service on Tues night. After getting those questions answered, I then asked the rep a few questions about the rebate. The rebate’s T&C say you need to send a copy of the receipt, with the Tivo model clearly identified. Unfortunately, the Big Lots receipt I got only shows “Electronics” as the item name, and also lists the SKU#. But there was also Big Lots SKU label sticker on the TiVo box, which is removable, and it has the model #. She didn’t raise any red flags to me about them not allowing the Big Lots store for this rebate, and just told me to make copies of everything, and include this box label. I then activated my Tivo online, and also did the pre-qual for my rebate. I plan to fight this hard if they try to deny it.

By: megazone

megazone — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 20:20:52 +0000

Brian – Indeed. Go right to TiVo, the rebate contractor has nothing at stake and doesn’t care.

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 19:55:35 +0000

Keep in mind that the folks who handle the rebates for TiVo are incredibly talented at ignoring the “raising of hell”. Just skip any thought of contesting their rejection of your rebate request through those channels, and go directly to TiVo Customer Support, and save yourself a lot of aggravation. You still might get no satisfaction, but at least you’ll get to “No” sooner and with less work than if you try to address this via the rebate handling company.

By: Alex

Alex — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:33:43 +0000

And if they werenâ€™t going to honor rebates on these units, then they shouldâ€™ve made a much more public announcement than a one-liner with no explanation buried in TiVoCommunity forums. How about using their blogger base? Would it have been too much work to drop a line to myself, Alex, Zatz, et al? We couldâ€™ve spread the word in minutes.

This is exactly how I feel. I plan on blogging about this latter tonight.. How can I ever recommend a deal when I don’t know a rebate is going to apply. Where is the list of “authorized resellers”?

By: megazone

megazone — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 10:53:50 +0000

If TiVo wants to limit the validity of a rebate then they need to be clear. If they’re going to claim ‘authorized retailer’ – then they need a prominent list of authorized retailers. I would never have suspected Big Lots wasn’t an authorized retailer.

And if they weren’t going to honor rebates on these units, then they should’ve made a much more public announcement than a one-liner with no explanation buried in TiVoCommunity forums. How about using their blogger base? Would it have been too much work to drop a line to myself, Alex, Zatz, et al? We could’ve spread the word in minutes.

Worst of all, why is their pre-authorization page telling people their eligible?

No matter how you look at it, TiVo didn’t handle this well.

By: Alex

Alex — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 10:13:03 +0000

This is crazy!

By: Vince

Vince — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 09:39:21 +0000

I sense a big PR backlash from this one which should technically target Big Lots, which should mention the units aren’t eligible, but won’t since the ‘blogosphere’ (ick) will target TiVo. I’m guessing the “second party” provision is what’s keeping these units from being rebate candidates. Depending on the volume of these units maybe TiVo will make good on the rebates anyway.

Big points for the Hitchhiker’s Guide homage…