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Justice Department takes aim at Hurricane Harvey scammers
This week a number of federal and state law enforcement agencies teamed up to prosecute any scammers taking advantage of the Hurricane Harvey aftermath. Texas-based agencies along with the SEC, FBI, FTC and others have created a working group that will investigate any fraud, theft and price gouging related to the hurricane. "Under the lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina, we bring a comprehensive law enforcement focus to combat any criminal activity arising from the tragedy of Hurricane Harvey and the rebuilding efforts underway," said acting US Attorney Abe Martinez in a statement.
Better Business Bureau lists AT&T as having lowest complaint rate among mobile carriers
Here at TUAW, we still hear plenty of complaints about AT&T's service (many of them actually directed at AT&T, but sent to us for some reason). But the Better Business Bureau says we're actually in a good spot -- AT&T apparently has the lowest amount of complaints from major carriers coming through that agency out of all of the various cell phone service providers. Note that they are referring to major carriers: smaller regional carrier Metro PC actually had the lowest number, but of course they don't service nearly as many people. Verizon was second best among the major carriers in the US, then Sprint, and T-Mobile brought up the rear, with 26,387 complaints over the last few years. There's good news, though -- data from last year shows that 95% of the complaints to the BBB about wireless issues were actually resolved. So apparently the squeaky wheel does get the grease. Obviously, there are a lot of factors here -- just because a company does or doesn't get a lot of BBB complaints doesn't necessarily reflect 1:1 on its service. But clearly not many of the people supposedly disappointed with AT&T have gone off to the Better Business Bureau for help. [via BGR]
BBB rates Toys 'R' Us "unsatisfactory" amidst reports of Wii bundling shenanigans
The Better Business Bureau is currently challenging Toys 'R' Us after the retailer advertised Wii for $249.99, but gave shoppers no choice but to purchase a $450 bundle on Black Friday. The BBB has slapped the toy distributor with an unsatisfactory rating, derived in part from consumer complaints based on the bundling scheme.A spokeswoman for Toys 'R' Us insisted that the Black Friday incident was a misunderstanding and that Wii should have also been available for the advertised price. Try telling that to the mother and son who watched the Niles, Illinois location's stock sell out as they argued with management. "So, as she's talking to me, it sold out from under us and they really did not care," recounted the mother in a Chicago NBC-affiliate report, "It was point blank. You either take it this way or leave it. And that's what happened."[Via Next Generation]
BBB largely rules for Cingular in ad battle with Sprint Nextel
We're not sure what this means for Cingular's pending lawsuit regarding its right to claim the "fewest dropped calls," but the Better Business Bureau's National Advertising Division has issued a ruling in the ongoing marketing war between Cingular and fellow child wireless giant Sprint Nextel. Apparently, after thorough, utterly scientific analysis, the BBB has determined that Cingular can continue to claim that they have "more bars in more places," the "fastest national wireless data network" and the "largest push-to-talk network in America." They also ruled that Cingular doesn't have the right to make some claims about its B2B offerings, but all told, we imagine that the boys in Atlanta are chalking this up as a victory for their confusing, largely meaningless ad campaign.[Via Techdirt]
Sprint Nextel and Cingular go crying to mommy about network quality
Claims about the quality of wireless networks are all fun and games until someone gets taken to court. Cingular has done just that in a May 9 court filing against Sprint Nextel, setting the stage for a legal showdown that could ultimately spell the end of ridiculous and meaningless claims that a network is "most powerful," "most reliable," or "l33t." It seems the spat started after Cingular began spreading the word that its network has the "fewest dropped calls" (you know, the commercials that cleverly drop out the sound, making you think your television's busted). Sprint Nextel, with its "most powerful" claim, took issue with that, and brought it before the Better Business Bureau's National Advertising Division to sort out. Cingular, in response, told Sprint to go big or go home, bypassed the BBB entirely, and filed a lawsuit counter-claiming not only that they have the fewest dropped calls, but Sprint's network isn't the most powerful, either. (Oh, snap!) For the record, Cingular cites data from a 2004 report thrown together by Telephia, but they won't say what data exactly, as they refuse to release the report itself (sound familiar?). Don't expect this fight to end any time soon, folks, and don't be surprised if Verizon eventually gets dragged into the mud, too.
