-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Harvard Business Review subscription -- 2 messages
Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 08:56:28 -0500
From: "Janice White" <janice.white@fct-cf.gc.ca>

Hi all,
I shuddered when I read this subject line.  I have spent a year going
back and forth with the Customer service people of this particular
magazine over a payment we made on our MasterCard for a years
subscription.  The issues stopped coming despite this payment and no one
could tell me why.  I emailed, I called, and I faxed for 8 months trying
to obtain the back issues we paid for, but didn't receive.  They argued
with me that our claim wasn't done within a set amount of time.  I
argued back, that that was not true and provided faxed documentation
dating back a minimum of 8 months.  I had emails from 1 person in
particular that basically said we were not being truthful in our claims.

After so many follow ups, I told the Customer rep. I was dealing with,
that I was on the verge of canceling their magazine from our collection
completely.  I finally got word back that they would bill us for a
renewal in order to start the subscription back up.  I paid for the
renewal in order to at least get the subscription restarted.  I will
keep an eye on this new problem, about the no. of issues a payment would
cover.

I waited another month before I emailed the person I was dealing with
again, about the back issues.  She was not pleasant about my persistant
requests for the back issues and suggested that the issues had up and
walked away on their own.  I pointed out that their magazine was NOT
that big of a demand title and that we were a closed library in which
only a few people had access to the incoming mail.  Amongst those people
would be Judges, who could well afford to buy the magazine without
"lifting it" from our offices.

I found that very unprofessional and have instituted a 30 day claim
cycle on their magazine, which means we will be claiming anything that
hasn't shown up within 30 days of the expected due date.

I hope no one has to go through this kind of poor customer service
representations, but be warned, don't let to much time to go by without
receiving an issue.

Good luck to those that have to struggle with this company.
Janice White
Federal Court of Canada Library

2 messages:

1)---------------------------

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Harvard Business Review subscription -- Jeanette Skwor
Date: Sat, 8 Dec 2001 23:31:39 -0500
From: David Goodman <dgoodman@PHOENIX.PRINCETON.EDU>

I come a little late to this discussion, but it would appear to me that
if
they so advertised, it would be appropriate for University Counsel to
write to them.

David Goodman, Princeton University Biology Library
dgoodman@princeton.edu            609-258-3235

2)--------------------------------
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: SERIALST Digest - 6 Dec 2001 to 7 Dec 2001 (#2001-228)
Date: Sat, 8 Dec 2001 05:33:47 -0800
From: Irma Nicola <INicola@APU.EDU>

Harvard business review is the only publisher to do this?  I was
wondering
because I am fairly new whether this was a practise by publishers for
purely
economic reasons.  How often do institutions notice this happening in a
title?  we have 1400 titles.

> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Harvard Business Review subscription
> Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2001 11:41:57 -0600
> From: "Skwor, Jeanette" <skworj@UWGB.EDU>
>
>
> I just finished talking to the Customer Service Dept. at Harvard
> Business
> Review because our 2001 subscription ended with the Sept issue, and we
> had
> paid our vendor, and our vendor paid them, for Jan - Dec.
>
> I am told that, at the time they were paid (Oct. 2000), HBR was
> publishing
> 10 issues per year, and therefore that's what we paid for.  The fact
> that
> they have since gone to 12 issues simply means that we do not get the
> other
> issues.    He went on to say, we have paid for 12 issues for 2002.  I
> asked,
> hypothetically, if they went to 15 issues per year, we would only get
> 12,
> then.  "Yes."
>
> I would add, the subscription rate as advertised in the magazine is "per
> year".
>
> We had a fairly lengthy conversation, and I was, if I say so myself,
> quite
> assertive.  To no avail.
> I have called my vendor rep, and I'm sure she will do battle with them
> also,
> but am curious to hear what experiences/thoughts others are having with
> this.
>
> I am also copying Harvard Business Review at the email address listed in
> back of their magazine.
>
>
>
> Jeanette L. Skwor
> Serials Dept.
> Cofrin Library
> University of Wisconsin - Green Bay
> Green Bay, WI 54311-7001
> (920) 465-2670
>