SmartMoney Magazine

There's probably not much more to say about the HP Windows 7 upgrade fulfilled by Arvato - unless the upgrade doesn't work. I haven't tried it yet because right now isn't a very convenient time for me to make significant changes to my computer system. The fulfillment was rather slow and the communication leading up to the fulfillment was poor, but it did come through in the end. Still, I will never go for a "we'll send you the upgrade once it become available" offer from HP ever again.

I have another complaint - this time about the magazine SmartMoney. This doesn't have anything to do with HP or Arvato, but it is the same general area of "consumer complaints." I might try to make another blog later on.

I just received an issue of SmartMoney that has the following on the cover: "This is a reminder that your current subscription term is ending, but as part of our Continuous Service program, your subscription will automatically renew unless you tell us to stop." So, I went to the Magazine Customer Service section of the website, entered my account number, and clicked on Cancel My Subscription. I indicated that I was cancelling because of Continuous Service. I was then presented with an offer to cancel Continuous Service, but to keep my renewal order. I chose "No, thank you. Just cancel my subscription." The result was "Your order was placed through one of our agents and cannot be cancelled automatically. Please contact customer service." However, the Contact Us page on the SmartMoney website brings me back to the Magazine Customer Service section of the website. I'm getting the e-runaround.

The notice attached to the front of my magazine does list two alternative ways to cancel, and I'm about to try one of them (I'm going to write a letter to SmartMoney, P.O. Box 8464, Red Oak, IA 51591-1464.) It would be nice if their website could handle my request or if I could just call SmartMoney Customer Service. If they ignore my letter, then I will need to use the third cancellation method - writing "cancel" on the invoice.