rewards program
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Google's Play Points program rewards you for downloading apps
After first launching in Japan last year, Google is bringing its Play Store rewards program to the US. Starting this week, you'll be able to enroll in Google Play Points, allowing you to earn rewards by using the company's digital marketplace.
Audi’s Silvercar rental service adds a customer loyalty program
Audi's premium rental service, Silvercar, just launched a customer loyalty program. All Silvercar customers will be automatically enrolled in the Premium Rewards Program. They'll earn one point for every dollar spent -- excluding those spent on taxes, insurance coverage, extras and fees -- and be able to use points on future rentals.
Uber expands its Rewards program to all US cities
Since November, Uber users in nine US cities have been able to earn points and claim incentives through the company's loyalty program, Uber Rewards. Now, customers across the country can earn the ability to, say, jump the line of people waiting for rides home from the airport, which may frustrate everyone else just enough to get them to sign up.
Club Nintendo adds accessory box, pouches, eShop games to catalog
Club Nintendo is offering new rewards for loyal customers, namely the sort of rewards you put other items in. Those with 700 free coins can pick up a green Mario-themed accessory basket that measures just under a foot wide. Don't be fooled by the name, as Nintendo can't stop the rebels among us from putting anything other than accessories in the basket, like cats. Or other, smaller baskets. Club Nintendo's two other new physical rewards are Animal Crossing-themed pouches. Available in both pink and blue, the pouches store handheld systems as large as the 3DS XL for 500 coins. We're eyeing up one of the pouches to store candy instead, because Nintendon't tell us what to do. As for the loyalty program's featured eShop game downloads, players can pick between four games until April 6: Kid Icarus of Myths and Monsters on 3DS (150 coins), Number Battle on 3DS (200 coins), Yoshi on Wii U (200 coins) and Bonsai Barber on WiiWare (250 coins). [Image: Nintendo]
Lineage II's Hero Coin rewards program debuts to firestorm
Lineage II just rolled out Hero Coins, a new rewards system designed to give players who purchase items from the cash shop a little something extra. But the devil is in the details, and players in the official thread have expressed that the illicit RMT deals look sweet in comparison. Here's how the program works: Players earn Hero Coins whenever they make qualifying purchases from the L2 Store or the L2 Galleria, with coins awarded retroactively for all purchases since November 30th, 2011. Sounds decent so far, right? But this is where the program loses its appeal for some players. Hero Coins are not account-wide; they're bound to whichever character received the purchased item. On top of that, all Hero Coins expire at the end of every calendar year at 3:01 a.m. EST January 1st, so players can't accumulate them until they can make a decent purchase. And accumulate they must: There are items in the rewards program that equate to over $35K, but can be found on the black market for approximately $2K. For really big spenders, the top item converts to spending over $200K in cash in the store -- in a single year. [Thanks to Ville for the tip!]
Reward Summit tracks your credit card reward programs so you don't have to
Reward Summit is a new finance app that has one goal in mind -- help you save money by using the right credit card when you make a purchase. The app tracks your credit card reward programs and tells you which card will save you the most money when you buy that big-screen TV. Reward Summit only works if you add your credit cards to the app. A thoughtfully designed UI makes it easy to securely and privately add your cards and their reward programs to the app. You don't have to add any personal details or credit card numbers, just the card type (i.e., Capital One Cash Rewards) that you own. If you are not sure what type of card you own, you can search through a list of banks and the major reward programs they offer. You should be able to match the card in your wallet with the card in the app in just a few taps. When you add your cards to the app, you can save them in the cloud by creating a Reward Summit account. If you want to store the card details only on your phone, you can just click "No Thanks" when prompted to create an account. When your cards are entered into the app, you are ready to go shopping. The app uses your location to find nearby stores, and you can pick the one that you are visiting. This store list is limited, especially in my area, which is quite rural. Once you pick your store, you can dial in the amount that you want to spend and let the app recommend which card you should use. A handy reporting feature allows you to view your lifetime savings as compared to other users. Not surprisingly, this comparison feature requires a Reward Summit account. Besides finding discounts, Reward Summit is also an informational tool that'll list your cards and the details of their rewards programs. Most people sign up for cards because of their cash rewards, but many people don't realize their cards carry other benefits like roadside service or extended warranties. The biggest gripe I have with Reward Summit is that it subtly pushes you to sign up for credit cards that you don't own. If you are making a purchase and your card only offers 1 percent back, the app will show cards that offer 5 percent back. The promotional offer is static and situated in the center of the page. You do have to click the promotion to view the details, but some may find its mere presence annoying. The opportunity to sign up for a card isn't limited to the buying advice page. Reward Summit also lets you apply for cards when you are browsing the app's catalog of banks and their credit card reward programs. Some people may consider this to be a feature and may appreciate being able to find and apply for a card that offers a sizable reward. Reward Summit is for people looking to save money by taking advantage of the reward programs offered by their credit cards. It landed today in the iOS App Store today and is available for free.
RIFT introduces loyalty rewards program for dedicated players
RIFT is introducing an innovative new program that allows players to get items for free when they spend money or money-substitutes on other items! The new rewards program will give players Loyalty points as those players purchase or spend credits, subscribe as a Patron, or consume REX (RIFT's tradable currency that can be purchased for real-world money). Since REX is tradable between players, a particularly thrifty player could accrue loyalty points without ever spending a real-world dime in RIFT's store. Current and former subscribers will be awarded some Loyalty points based on how long they have been subscribed. Players will be able to use Loyalty to unlock exclusive costumes, the ability to change target icons, and unique dimensions. This is all part of RIFT's free-to-play initiative and will be going live on June 12th with RIFT 2.3: Empyreal Assault.
Toys R Us revamps loyalty rewards program
Toys R Us' loyalty program will undergo a few changes starting July 1, as announced in a press release today. The Rewards "R" Us system rewards buyers with points for each dollar spent online and in stores. Points no longer expire in the revised system, and there are no more exclusive periods of time (like holidays) where points cannot be earned.In the new program, every dollar spent on entertainment products (such as video games) is rewarded with one point. Members receive a $5 certificate every time they reach 500 points earned.To put that into perspective, rewards program members get $5 in "R"Us reward money for purchasing 17 Nintendo DS games at $30 apiece. Totally worth it, right?
Google's Vulnerability Program ups the ante for helpful hackers
This is not your ordinary rewards program, it's Google's way of paying it forward... to hackers. After celebrating the one year anniversary of its unique initiative this past November -- in which the coding-inclined are compensated for exposing critical flaws across its suite of web services -- the folks over at Mountain View have updated the program's policies with a bigger chunk of cash. Previously, the search giant had set a max payout of $3,133.7 for any discovered vulnerabilities (a bizarre sum, we know), but that cap has now seen an increase up to $20,000 depending on the severity of the reported bug. For a company with billion dollar coffers, the move appears to be none other than a good faith investment in the security research community. But if you lean a bit closer to the paranoiac line, it could also be viewed as a countermeasure to other, higher-paying firms with less than honorable intentions. Whether your rose-colored glasses are on or off, it's still nice work if you can get paid for it. And who knows? You might even make it to the Security Hall of Fame.
GameStop to offer in-store DLC purchases and new loyalty program this year
GameStop knows how sick you are of those silly, antiquated, digital ways of purchasing your downloadable content, and company COO J. Paul Raines has a solution: buy the content in stores! During today's quarterly earnings call for investors, Raines detailed the new system, as well as the previously discussed customer loyalty program. "We've been working on the technology for DLC for well over a year," Raines said, "and I think what's important to understand is that we've had to create proprietary point of sale technology in partnership with Microsoft to be able to show that DLC catalog at retail. We're also working on merchandising and marketing the DLC content in our stores. So this is something that we feel like the industry is moving our way, and our investments are starting to really be timely and publishers see us as the destination for sale of DLC in stores." Raines also noted that the in-store DLC program will be launching in 35 locations this spring with a "limited catalog," and then adding "select titles and SKUs over the course of the summer." A nationwide roll out is planned for the fall. Also launching nationwide this fall will be GameStop's new customer loyalty program, which will be tested in four regional US markets beginning in May. Raines declined to name the test markets, saying only that we'll "have to wait till May 28 to find out".
GameStop still evaluating customer 'loyalty opportunity' program
Back in 2009, we spotted a couple of GameStop surveys asking customers about the Edge card and a possible new rewards program. According to Gamervision's sources, the new rewards program will go into effect "by the end of this year." As detailed in the aforementioned surveys (and corroborated by GV's sources), the rewards program is said to feature two tiers, "one for everyone, and one that can only be earned by frequent use of the basic card." We contacted GameStop corporate for comment and were told, "We are in the process of evaluating loyalty opportunities for our customers. As this is a work in progress, we are not going to comment on speculation to changes to our Edge card program." While certainly not confirmation of any changes taking place by the end of this year, it does affirm that the company is still considering altering the Edge card at some point in the future. For now, though, a new "rewards program" seems to be little more than a germinating idea. [Thanks, Mike]
Sony Pictures Blu-ray Club gives points for buying its BD-Live titles
Similar to Walt Disney Studios' Disney Movie Rewards Live program -- which will launch alongside Sleeping Beauty on October 7th -- Sony Pictures is crafting its very own rewards program. The Sony Pictures Blu-ray Club will supposedly encourage purchases of BD-Live-enabled titles by giving owners "points" that they can redeem toward "sweepstakes entries and other added values featured in the existing Sony Rewards program." Obviously, it costs nothing to actually join the loyalty program, and while we can't help but announce this news with our heads pointed decidedly downward, at least Sony gives users the ability to register each new disc via their Blu-ray player should they choose. Launch date? October 7th, with Sandler's You Don't Mess With the Zohan driving the sure to be widespread momentum.[Via VideoBusiness]
