The WCF Courier doesn't give the "full story".......

              
              Have you been noticing the WCF Courier pushing it’s 99¢ “Unlimited Digital Access” lately? They’ve been pushing it on their Facebook page and on their website.

               I am a subscriber to the Green Gazette. It’s $9.99 per month, and you can view the electronic edition to their paper. I thought I would take a chance and switch to the Courier and see how their service works. It always seems like the Courier covers this area of Iowa a little better than the Gazette.

               When you go to the WCF Courier website, you’ll see a link at the top of the page for their e-edition. This is the WCF Courier equivalent of the CR Gazette’s Green Edition. At the right of the page is login information, but right above it, is the advertising that you see at the top of this post.

               It says, Special Offer, 99¢ for “Unlimited Digital Access” for 30 days, and it’s something like $7 per month after that. Hey, what a bargain! That is until you realize that you do not get their e-edition with “Unlimited Digital Access”. So what exactly does “Unlimited Digital Access” mean when it comes to the Courier?

               From their own website:

 

Digital Only 99¢ Special

1st month, introductory rate ($6.95 after)

If you are not a current newspaper subscriber, you can now test drive a WCFCourier.com subscription for only 99¢! As an online-only subscriber, you will have unlimited access to our premium content such as breaking news, local, state and regional news, sports, weather, obituaries and more.

We hope you continue to enjoy the quality journalism produced by The Courier.

Purchase!              

Print discount 99¢ Special

1st month, introductory rate ($1.95 after)

As a newspaper subscriber, you can now test drive a WCFCourier.com subscription for only 99¢! As an online & print subscriber, you will have unlimited access to our premium content such as breaking news, local, state and regional news, sports, weather, obituaries and more.

We hope you continue to enjoy the quality journalism produced by The Courier.

Purchase!  

             So, for digital only, you get premium content such as breaking news, local, state, and regional news, sports, weather, obituaries, and more. It sounds a lot like what you’d find in the newspaper. Aha! But the devil is in the details, or in this case, lack thereof.
             What I found out the hard way was that what you are in fact getting, is access to their website where they put up “select” news articles and obituaries. It’s the same thing that the Gazette and many other newspapers give you for free.

              Listen, that’s fine that the Courier wants to charge you for access to their website. However, the way that they are marketing it is pretty shady. They make is appear as though you get the e-edition as part of the “Unlimited Digital Access”. The fact of the matter is, you only have LIMITED digital access, as the e-edition is not part of the package. This is not explicit in their advertising, and the way they advertise it on their e-edition page makes this matter of fact quite convoluted to the average consumer.

               I called and complained to the Courier. Their operator made me feel stupid as she acted incredulous that I would actually think the e-edition would be part of the “Unlimited Digital Access” package. I mentioned to her that I thought it was shady advertising because it was not explicitly mentioned that it was not included. I told her that “unlimited” generally means “unlimited” unless there is fine print, and in this case, there is none.

               I also pointed out to her that the CR Gazette includes the digital edition as part of their package to which she retorted, “This is not the Gazette.” How painfully obvious!

               I have a lot of respect for the WCF Courier when it comes to journalism. However, this episode really upset me. How can I trust a news source that uses shady tactics to drive revenue?

               I asked the lady at the Courier if I could get a refund and she said that I couldn’t. The best she could do was cancel my subscription. I asked her if I would at least be entitled to the month that I had paid for. She said that by me asking for it to be canceled, it would take effect as soon as some other department got the order.

               I filed a complaint with the Attorney General of Iowa over this. It’s only 99¢, but how many people are they doing this to? I told the Attorney General in my letter that I didn’t care about the 99¢. All I wanted to see was the Courier change how they were advertising.

               Well, today I got a check for 99¢ from the Courier. I guess the Attorney General must have contacted them. However, I went to their website and noticed that they are still advertising the same as they have been.
               If you like the Courier enough to pay $7 per month for just their website, God bless you. As long as you know what you’re getting for your money, then I have no problem with anything. Just be informed – if you take the Courier up on this 99¢ offer, it WILL NOT include the e-edition. That’s extra – a lot extra. The Courier requires 3 months of payment for the e-edition, it does not include the website, and it’s about $15 per month. Don’t quote me on the price, but it's somewhere in that ballpark. The lady who refused to refund my money tried selling me the e-edition – which I think is the whole reason behind the shady advertising in the first place.