Tomfoolery For Sure: Disposable "Phone" A Phoney!
From Show Biz Data:
UNIVERSAL HANGS UP ON PHONE DEAL
After a highly publicized disposable cell phone turned out to be as jerry-rigged as E.T.'s, Universal has agreed to send $30 checks and a free DVD to about 1,000 people who won the phones as part of a promotion for the Jurassic Park III DVD that ended on May 17, according to the trade publication Videostore Magazine. A Universal spokesman said that Hop-On.com has been unable to deliver the phones in time for the promotion. However, the San Francisco Chronicle reported in April that, despite being highly touted in several leading publications, samples of the supposedly disposable phones, which were to retail for $30 (hence the refund amount), turned out to have the innards of those manufactured by Nokia, which cost about $250. The online publication StockPatrol.com further reported that after Universal and Hop-On announced their promotional deal last November, shares in the Garden Grove, CA-based company soared from a few cents to $1.50. They have now fallen to less than 30 cents. Although Hop-On has said that the sample phones were simply mock-ups, it has yet to come forward with a single disposable phone of its own manufacture. Moreover, despite recent claims that it has made multimillion-dollar deals with companies in Britain and Greece, it has not yet revealed where its production factory is and has never even received FCC approval to manufacture the phone, according to published reports.
[ 06-10-2002: Message edited by: MacsRGood4U ]</p>
UNIVERSAL HANGS UP ON PHONE DEAL
After a highly publicized disposable cell phone turned out to be as jerry-rigged as E.T.'s, Universal has agreed to send $30 checks and a free DVD to about 1,000 people who won the phones as part of a promotion for the Jurassic Park III DVD that ended on May 17, according to the trade publication Videostore Magazine. A Universal spokesman said that Hop-On.com has been unable to deliver the phones in time for the promotion. However, the San Francisco Chronicle reported in April that, despite being highly touted in several leading publications, samples of the supposedly disposable phones, which were to retail for $30 (hence the refund amount), turned out to have the innards of those manufactured by Nokia, which cost about $250. The online publication StockPatrol.com further reported that after Universal and Hop-On announced their promotional deal last November, shares in the Garden Grove, CA-based company soared from a few cents to $1.50. They have now fallen to less than 30 cents. Although Hop-On has said that the sample phones were simply mock-ups, it has yet to come forward with a single disposable phone of its own manufacture. Moreover, despite recent claims that it has made multimillion-dollar deals with companies in Britain and Greece, it has not yet revealed where its production factory is and has never even received FCC approval to manufacture the phone, according to published reports.
[ 06-10-2002: Message edited by: MacsRGood4U ]</p>