In May our company was contacted by a representative of Platinum Television Group. We were told that they were producing a show called New Home Journal which was to be aired on HGTV. They were going to be doing a segment on Satellite TV and were considering featuring our company.
After several phone calls with various individuals we finally spoke with the Executive Producer, Doug Scott. We were to be featured on a 6-7 minute segment to be aired in the 3rd quarter.
This seemed to be perfect timing. During this time internet based companies were getting a bad rap because of the few out there with bad business practices. We felt that being featured on a national television show would reinforce our credibility a reputible company. The fact that this was to be aired in the 3rd quarter was also a definate factor since this would give us the all the advertising we needed for the holiday shopping season.
Of course, there is a catch.in order to be on their program you had to pay an "Insertion Fee" of $18,700. This was supposed to be standard procedure in the industry.
We were very sceptical now of turning over almost $19,00 to a company we were not familiar with. Upon verifing they were a true production company that was producing the New Home Television to be aired on HGTV the contracts were signed.
The next step was to wait for the script to arrive, make any changes and send it back in along with the "Insertiion Fee". After waiting and waiting for the script which never arrived we started getting phone calls stating that we needed to pay the insertion fee first then they make sure we got the script.in July holding our breath and still holding out hope the insertion fee was paid.
We continued to wait for the elusive script to arrive. Finally August 22 we got the script. We had several issues with the script which needed to be addressed before we could agree to it and send it back. After several attempts to try and reach someone we finally spoke to Melissa Hume.in the decussion with her she said it had taken so long to get the money and script that it would not be possible to be aired in the 3rd quarter.
This was turning into a nightmare. There seemed to be no one person who could tell us what the situation was. It was constant confusion. At this point we didn't know when the show might air if ever. We told Melissa that since it could not air in the 3rd quarter as expected and considering all the confusion we just wanted to cancel and get our money back.
After that conversation we could not reach anyone that we had previously talked too. Message after message was left for Doug Scott (Executive Director), Scott Pariselli (Creative Director), Dave Johnson (Pre-production), Gary Barris (Show Airings), along with several others. No one returned our calls. Each time a call was made the secretary would ask for our name and company name and somehow she would always come back to the phone and say they had just stepped out or were in a meeting.
Finally on November 6th we were finally able to reach Scott Pariselli only by giving the secretary a different name and company name. (It seems they may have been avoiding us). We explained the situation to him which he seemed to know nothing about and said he would call us back.
November 8 we finally spoke to Doug Scott the executive producer about the situation. He told us because we were late on the payment we held up the process and he was not going to refund any money. He stated if we wanted our money back we would have to sue him and then followed firmly with the fact that they had several attorneys on staff there.
Listed below is a copy of just a small section taken from the paperwork given to us by Platinum Television Group showing saying why we should be a part of their program.
Platinum Television Group lends total support to featured
companies, guests and locations via a multimedia promotional campaign. This successfully proven media schedule is designed to maximize exposure, recognition and credibility in the featured industry. The program includes:
. Advertising Promotions
Companies showcased in a Platinum Television Group television show can expect placement of advertisements within carefully selected newspapers and magazines. Consumer periodicals and magazines falling within tIle appropriate demographic market will feature full-page advertisements on a weekly schedule. Readers of these publications will benefit from the advertising schedule that is designed to ignite interest, maximize viewership and create a third
Party endorsement for the show and your company.
. Editorial Public relations and advertising join forces at Platinum Television Group. Our in-house public relations department compliments the advertising program with added credibility of editorial coverage. They incorporate a newsworthy angle in every press release and article created. Upon your approval of the editorial copy, we distribute the articles and press releases to our customized listings.
. Media
Added to the scope ofPlatinum Television Group multimedia campaign is the application of top media services. News and press releases are distributed regularly to a variety of key national and local media services and then they are forwarded to subscribing newspapers and magazines.
Bottom Line is that we have still received nothing.
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