DVDizzy Forum

Today, I discovered a mysterious "due on commitment" charge on my DMC account, about $70. I have no idea what this means. I called DMC, and apparently they cancelled my membership, and backcharged me "full price" for the introductory DVDs which I have already paid. Needless to say, I will dispute this charge with my credit card company.

I cannot recommend the DMC to anyone, it was nothing but a horrible, horrible experience. I've been on the phone for hours today, being bumped from operator to operator, with no answers.

Did you read the terms when you signed up? Every single DMC enrollment requires some commitment, usually 4 or 5 movies in two years. You can't really get mad at them because you didn't follow the terms. Though if they didn't give you any advance warning, then, I sympathize with you a bit more. Even so, they're constantly mailing and e-mailing, so unless you changed both addresses and forgot to tell them (in which case you'd automatically be receiving selections of the month), you'd have constant reminders that you were member of the club and had commitments to fulfill.

No, it wasn't like that at all. They CANCELLED my membership, without warning, about a month after joining. They gave me ZERO opportunity to buy more DVDs. Even on the phone today, I begged and pleaded for them to let me buy DVDs to fulfill the commitment, but they would not let me. I swear it was as if they do not want me to buy from them.

The only relevant information I could find in the membership terms (which I have thoroughly read):
"All applications to join the Disney Movie Club are subject to review. We reserve the right to request additional information, to reject any application, or to cancel any membership. We reserve the right to alter or end this offer at any time."

Okay, then that's a different matter altogether. And it's very strange too. They gave you no reason for it? You don't have other accounts open or are in Canada or something?

abbatazappa wrote:No, it wasn't like that at all. They CANCELLED my membership, without warning, about a month after joining. They gave me ZERO opportunity to buy more DVDs. Even on the phone today, I begged and pleaded for them to let me buy DVDs to fulfill the commitment, but they would not let me. I swear it was as if they do not want me to buy from them.

The exact same thing happened with me at Columbia House. It's criminal, really. I was charged a lot of money for no reason and got nothing for it. At least DMC's cast members are generally nice and friendly... I won't repeat my opinion of CH's people. I'm sorry this happened to you.

-Aaron

I'm not in Canada, and I've never had a membership previously. It's all pretty bizarre. No one would give me a straight answer. They did keep telling me I needed to talk to someone in a "special department", and that they would have to call me back. I went up the ranks of supervisors, but apparently there is only "one person" in this "special department", and only that particular person would be able to give me any answers. They could not tell me when this person would call or why my membership was cancelled. And most disturbing, they would not let me buy more DVDs (at full price) to fulfill the commitment, instead backcharging me full price for the 3 $1.99 introductory titles I've already paid for. Insane, I tell you. The only reason I joined was to get the exclusive titles...hardly seems worth it at this point. Hopefully this person who supposedly will call will have an explanation. Otherwise, I'm fighting this all the way through a credit card dispute just on the principal. If it was anyone but Disney, I'd think I've been scammed.

It does sound pretty insane. Keep us informed.

are you by any chance selling them on ebay? i have a friend that was selling them and her account was closed in the same manner. The terms say that "Membership is intended for personal use only. Movies purchased through the Disney Movie Club are not intended for resale or other commercial purposes. Violations of this policy are strictly prohibited..." (page 9)

Just to let everyone know how this turned out....

Yes, I sold one copy on eBay. ONE. I was simply trying to cover some of my costs to get in the club. I GAVE AWAY a title to a relative. The rest I kept. Don't ask me how, but DMC claims they can prove I sold that one copy.

Now, about the terms. I read the terms here:
http://disney.videos.go.com/General/Acq ... gnUp/Terms

However, I was infomed this is the "short version". There is a "long version" that you have to agree to when signing up, and in the booklet they send to you. Notice the "short version" does not say anything about reselling, but the "long version" does. They purposefully left that part out of the short version. I think this is very misleading. I remember reading the terms at the link above, and assumed they were the same as when I joined. NOT SO.

The "loss prevention" person at DMC was very inflexible. Basically, I have to either return everything (impossible, since I do not have them now), or pay up. If I don't pay, it goes to a collection agency, and DMC has complete say as to whether or not I met their terms. In other words, they will win any dispute. At that point if I still don't pay, they will garnish wages to get their money.

All I have to say is don't join the DMC.

Is this the dvd you sold? http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0018610594

If it is, I can see how the DMC can prove you violated their terms. They more than likely keep track of who buys what "exclusive title". They can prove it by simply looking at your ebay seller location. Then all they have to do is look at their records to see if any club member lives in that location. Then look to see if that member bought the dvd in question.

abbatazappa wrote:All I have to say is don't join the DMC.

I come away with "Don't join the DMC to sell the Club Exclusives discs online." Though they definitely should make the full terms clear. I can understand them wanting to keep the exclusives exclusive, but it's inevitable that people will sell these. I really think they ought to be lenient with you, for a one-time offense. It seems like good business practice to send you a notice not to re-sell club DVDs, rather than charge you money and eliminate any chance you'll buy from them again.