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From: roy@alanine.phri.nyu.edu (Roy Smith)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: McDonalds 900 Scam
Message-ID: <12621@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 25 Sep 90 17:46:28 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 680, Message 5 of 10


Jeremy Grodberg writes:

> It seems that McDonalds has figured out how to legally run a sweepstakes
> for profit, and once again 900 telephone service is the key. [...]
> Any way you slice it, I think it is scummy for prize winners to have
> to pay to claim their prize, and I doubt that McDonalds would be doing
> it unless they were going to make money on it [...]

	I have no love of 900 numbers either, and I agree that
charging $0.75 for the phone call to see if you've won is pretty low,
but Jeremy isn't being entirely fair in his condemnation.  My ticket
back goes on to say: "net proceeds, if any, donated to Ronald McDonald
Children's Charities (registered trademark)".  It's still pretty low,
but at least they aren't just pocketing the money.  Then again, if
they are soliciting money for their charity fund, why be so
underhanded about it?  Maybe that's not 100% fair either, since they
do have plainly marked donation boxes on every counter, but I digress.

	The thing that gets me is the "if any" part.  Obviously they
are charging back against net profits some sort of costs.  The cost of
running the phone line?  Printing the tickets?  Advertising costs?


Roy Smith, Public Health Research Institute
455 First Avenue, New York, NY 10016
roy@alanine.phri.nyu.edu -OR- {att,cmcl2,rutgers,hombre}!phri!roy