Beware of the Matrix
Websites offering the latest expensive
hi-tech gadgets as a 'free gift' in return for buying
a low-value product are the subject of an OFT warning
to consumers.
The 'matrix' schemes, which are being promoted by a
growing number of websites, promise people the chance
of getting a valuable 'free gift', such as a mobile
phone, ipod, or palm pilot, by spending £20 on
a low-value product such as a mobile phone signal booster,
or a CD ROM containing ring-tones and games.
Consumers who buy the product become members of a waiting
list to receive their chosen 'free gift'. The matrix
works by sending the person at the top of the list their
'free gift' only after a prescribed number of new recruits
has signed up.
The websites appear to be particularly popular amongst
teenagers, with some claiming to have thousands of members.
But the vast majority of those who pay their £20
will never receive the 'free gift' because of the ever-increasing
and ultimately unsustainable number of additional recruits
required to join.
The nature of the schemes means that the number of
members who are waiting for their 'free gift' will always
far exceed the number of 'free gifts' actually awarded.
The further down the waiting list you join, the less
your chances of ever receiving your 'free gift'.
For more information see the OFT
press release.
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