Onerous Requirements
Some rebate offers are so aggressive that the products are virtually free. At Outpost.com, for example, Pinnacle Studio 8 video editing software costs $79.99, but is -$0.01 after an $80 mail-in rebate. Such a deal, right? Not necessarily.
The $80 rebate is actually two offers: a $50 one that requires proof of upgrading from a competitor's program (a preloaded version on your PC doesn't count); and a $30 offer that must be sent to the same address--but to a different department. Another requirement: You must send either the title page of the user manual for a full version of the older software or the old installation CD.
How can you find out about the rules before you sink your money into the product? Manufacturers often tuck the details inside the product box, which, once opened, cannot be returned. Retailers don't provide rebate rules until checkout, either, though you can ask a cashier to print out the rules before you buy. The process is a little easier online, where many merchants provide the rules.
Vendors, such as McAfee Security, have tried to be more forthcoming about the details by listing them on a little sticker on the box. Emphasize the word little. The McAfee Personal Firewall Plus coupon we looked at was barely larger than a butterfly, with letters about the size of starving fleas. The label has roughly 700 words of fine print on one side and a cramped form on the other. And if the software is shrink-wrapped, you probably can't peel off the sticker to read the details.
McAfee says its stickers are standard in the software industry, especially now that some programs come in a box about the size of a VHS video tape. "We want to offer the terms and conditions up front, and that requires a small sticker [in the new packaging]," says Michelle Jimenez, McAfee marketing manager.
If you can't read or find the rebate requirements, ask the store or call the manufacturer about the specifics.
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