Battery Pack Pro upgrade dissatisfaction

[Badandy]

As some of you know, OmegaOne is charging $5 for the upgrade from Battery Pack to BatteryPack Pro after saying they will have free upgrades for life. I have sent them a complaint, and I encourage everyone who feels the same way as I do, to do the same, and send it to the same email adress. Here is my email, I have recieved no response yet.

Hello. I would just like to say that I enjoy your Battery Pack program very much. It displays all of the info I need on my Today Screen and is one of my must have programs. However, this is not what I am writing about. I am writing about my extreme dissatisfaction with your pricing plan for your new Battery Pack Pro.

I bought Battery Pack under the condition that I would receive free upgrades on your product as you had advertised. I think it is a detestable business practice on your part to go back on your word. Of course, you will try to justify your decision by saying, "It is a major new upgrade." It is, but isn't that what upgrades are supposed to be? Are you now going to charge me for every upgrade contrary to what you advertised? I know, it is only $5, but I am opposed to the fact that it costs money at all. It is obvious that your company thinks they can change the name and charge it as a "new program". I, for one, will not fall for that. Yes, it has new features, but it should be free. There is really no excuse for this.

Until this problem is rectified, which I think will happen, since I have always had good luck dealing with your support in the past, I am now not buying any of your products, and encouraging everyone not to buy the Battery Pack Pro upgrade or any of your other products as well. Once you correct this problem, of course, I will have my faith restored in your company.




Thanks for listening,


A concerned former customer


The email address is [email protected]


If you feel the same way as me, please feel free to send them an email voicing your opinion.

[KimVette]

Do two things:

Report them to the attorney general for fraudulent advertising
Sue them in small claims court for breach of contract

[Robb Bates]

This is a bad move on their part. Greed will do that.

They might try to say that it's a new program. But if that's the case, you should be able to install Battery Pack and Battery Pack Pro at the same time. Is this possible? I don't know why you would want to, but if you can't, then that might be a bit of ammunition to throw at them showing it is the same program with a different name.

Robb

[Badandy]

Do two things:

Report them to the attorney general for fraudulent advertising
Sue them in small claims court for breach of contract

It's alright, I don't want to take that drastic of steps. I don't have the time either.



BTW, who is the person that voted no? Can you explain your vote?

[Steven Cedrone]

I did not vote (as I not own the app in question), but let me give you another side of a similar situation. I bought an application (forget how much, but let's say $15.00). The developer has now announced that he is going to give the application away for free. Which application do you think will be around say ten months from now? I have a theory that an application developer is more apt to stay in the business when getting paid to do it, than someone that is doing it out of a love for the platform. Sure, these guys handled this poorly, but I think in the long run your app will continue to be devoloped and the one I purchased will probably wither on the vine...

Steve

[Jacob]

BTW, who is the person that voted no? Can you explain your vote?

I voted no.. but didn't have time to really post.

I agree with Steven that they handled it poorly, however I think there was no way for them to get out of it without some customer flak.

I think they were dumb to have a lifetime upgrade policy from the get go. As businesses get more successful and their customer base gets larger the amount of money they make on upgrades starts to get more significant since much of their available market has already purchased the product.

A lifetime free upgrade policy nulls out this income and would essentially mean that they are cutting their ability to continue remaining in business.

I don't see this as greed since I see greed as an excessive measure designed simply to gain money. I simply don't see this as excessive. Even if it was, then you're within your rights to boycott them.

It's your right to send your thoughts to the developer and boycott their products. That's how the market works. The problem is that they are then put in a no-win situation - either way they make no money from you ever again on that product. If the prospect of you not purchasing any of their other products and the negative publicity you'll give them isn't worth them giving in, well, that's their decision.

[Badandy]

I did not vote (as I not own the app in question), but let me give you another side of a similar situation. I bought an application (forget how much, but let's say $15.00). The developer has now announced that he is going to give the application away for free. Which application do you think will be around say ten months from now? I have a theory that an application developer is more apt to stay in the business when getting paid to do it, than someone that is doing it out of a love for the platform. Sure, these guys handled this poorly, but I think in the long run your app will continue to be devoloped and the one I purchased will probably wither on the vine...

Steve


You are right in your sense, but I think you are misinterpreting it. I did not get it for free, and I did pay 15 bucks to get it. They said that upgrades would be free for life for people who buy the program, not free for everybody. I expect them to stick to their claim, and not give a bogus reason like, "It's a new program, see, it has a different name."

[rzanology]

maaaan....what are you talking about? They lied!!!! i wish i bought that thing. I'd be on the phone with my lawyer right now....i'd have those fools paying for my hx4700!

They could have offered one free upgrade or something. Dont just decide to charge all over again. LIARS!!!!!!!!!!!

[Badandy]

I voted no.. but didn't have time to really post.

I agree with Steven that they handled it poorly, however I think there was no way for them to get out of it without some customer flak.



They never should have promised that it was free upgrades. They should have said it was "Free minor upgrades and bug fixes for life." I would have been fine with that.


[quote]
I think they were dumb to have a lifetime upgrade policy from the get go. As businesses get more successful and their customer base gets larger the amount of money they make on upgrades starts to get more significant since much of their available market has already purchased the product.

Then they shouldn't have promised it. I agree with you on all of your points here, they should have been clearer or not done it in the first place.

A lifetime free upgrade policy nulls out this income and would essentially mean that they are cutting their ability to continue remaining in business.

True, again, I agree. But they did tell me free upgrades for life. They should stick to their promises and revise their position for all buyers from one date onward.


I don't see this as greed since I see greed as an excessive measure designed simply to gain money. I simply don't see this as excessive. Even if it was, then you're within your rights to boycott them.

I don't think it was greed either. I just think they were wrong to go back on their word. They lose my trust, they lose customers.

It's your right to send your thoughts to the developer and boycott their products. That's how the market works.

I know. I am by no means trying to run them out of business, however. I want them to grant me what they promised, and revise their position on upgrades to what I mentioned earlier.

The problem is that they are then put in a no-win situation - either way they make no money from you ever again on that product. If the prospect of you not purchasing any of their other products and the negative publicity you'll give them isn't worth them giving in, well, that's their decision.

It is indeed.

[Badandy]

[quote="rzanology"]....i'd have those fools paying for my hx4700!

quote]

That is what brings companies out of business, which I do not want this one to do, nor will it from my little boycott. I just want to make a point, and hope they revise their position.

[tanalasta]

They upset me. It wasn't more what they did, but how they did it. Batterypack Pro IMHO isn't even worth a major upgrade - compared to the current version of the standard batterypack, there is only one or two extra features.

OmegaOne went to extraordinary steps to market Batterypack Pro as a vastly new and improved product and worth paying for when it in-fact was obviously not. They suggested that Batterypack Pro was nothing like the original Batterypack, but an altogether new offering and that nothing at all had changed regarding 'free lifetime upgrades' for the original product. i.e. They will continue to offer free lifetime (but redundant and soon-to-be non-existent) upgrades for the original version. It was an underhanded, dishonest and rather detestable way of treating their customers. I sincerely hope the marketing staff or those responsible no-longer hold their jobs.

I would've paid the $5 upgrade if I could do so with Handango - as I still have that $5 discount voucher for filling in that survey handy. That would've made it free! But I can't. I have to upgrade via OmegaOne's site. So I won't.

[Badandy]

Here is an update for all of you who care (which is not many). I recieved an email in return and I will paste that here. They did bring up some of the issues such as they need to make a living. I agreed, and I sent a response, so here are both of those email messages.


HERE IS THE ONE THEY SENT


f you have purchased Battery Pack in the past, you can still get the
latest version of Battery Pack (v5.5.0) for free. To do this, uninstall
your current full version of Battery Pack, then install the latest demo
version of Battery Pack from http://www.omegaone.com/BattOD.EXE - tap
return if asked for a registration code. Once this has been installed,
Battery Pack will remember you had purchased in the past, and you will
have the latest full version. If you hard reset your device, install the
older full version, then uninstall & install the latest demo version to
get the latest version of Battery Pack.

We do still intend to keep improving the standard version of Battery
Pack, and updates will still continue to be free. We provide lifetime
free updates of Battery Pack and will continue to help & support the
people who were good enough to purchase our product in the first place.
Since v1 of Battery Pack, users have been able to get great new features
(e.g. Program Bar, Power Clear, Power Adjust, Power Task, Power Buttons,
Power Alert) to enhance their Pocket PC for free. We have also released
two updates of Battery Pack 2004 since the introduction of Battery Pack
Pro and new features have been included.

However, development & support costs for Battery Pack are very high. The
money for new features both in Battery Pack and in Battery Pack Pro must
come from somewhere, and recently revenue from Battery Pack has
decreased substantially to a level where we cannot support the costs of
continued development & technical support with the revenue Battery Pack
is generating. We anticipated that without having a deluxe version of
Battery Pack we would have to discontinue any future updates to Battery
Pack as it will be uneconomic to do so, and would have to downgrade our
technical support service.

Right now we feel having two versions will enable us to continue to
provide new features to both Battery Pack & Battery Pack Pro customers.
You are welcome to update, but can continue to receive updates for
Battery Pack at no extra cost. We have tried to limit the cost of
Battery Pack Pro for existing users to a nominal amount.

Best regards

Alexa, Technical Support
Omega One Software LLC
Website www.omegaone.com


Here is the one I SENT IN RETURN TO THAT EMAIL

Thanks for responding. I understand that it was uneconomical to make
the update free, but the simple fact is that you should NOT have
promised free lifetime upgrades that were unconditional. This should
be your upgrade policy, and I highly urge you to adopt it.

"Minor upgrades and bug fixes are free, and a nominal fee will be
added for major feature updates."

There is your new upgrade policy. The point is, even if it is not
economical for you, you promised me free lifetime upgrades for Battery
Pack. I know you have designated Battery Pack Pro as a new program,
but the fact is that it is an upgrade for Battery Pack . Since you
had promised me free upgrades for Battery Pack, and Battery Pack Pro
adds new features ontop of Battery Pack, I expect a free upgrade.
However, I do have concern for your business. Therefore, I will
change a demand that I think is very fair. If you change your upgrade
policy to something similar to what I have stated above and I see it
somewhere on your site, where OTHER PEOPLE can also see it, I will
happily pay $5 to upgrade, since I value your product so much.

Thanks, and no hard feelings,



I think that was fair, and I am hoping that they change their policy to something that I have stated. If they do so, they will get my business back, and I hope yours too.

[Kati Compton]

The only problem about changing their policy is that it will probably upset people too. :(

[Badandy]

I don't think it will that much, maybe a little. But they really need to change it.