@UchihaSasuke:

Let's see the shipment confirmation e-mail, sir.

GarouDiams

Just got this:

Thank you for purchasing the ""Sharp Aquos LC26D43U 26"" LCD HDTV"" from the Amazon Marketplace. We regret to inform you that our computer system has suffered a major malfunction. Some of the products that we sell and offer matched the wrong items on Amazon.com. Unfortunately we do not carry the ""Sharp Aquos LC26D43U 26"" LCD HDTV"" and do not have it to ship out. We always strive to provide our customers with the best service possible. We have temporarily closed our store to correct this issue and would like to assure you that your credit card has not been charged for this purchase and the order has been cancelled. We appreciate your understanding of this issue, and only hope that this experience has not hindered your view of Amazon.com and shopping online. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Have a pleasant day.

Sincerely,

Order Processing Center

UofITom

You know someone at MyOfficeSource is saying "Shit, I always do that, I always mess up some mundane detail," right?

MayorBee is Haulin' Ass...Gettin' Paid

I ordered the 32" and the 46" separately, and they cancelled both. Oh well.

bts

@lldsandsll:

Yeah! You tell 'em. People and their silly hopes and dreams. Just because businesses have honored their mistakes before is no reason to think they'd do it again! Silly optimists. (was too lazy and cynical to order)

BasicBlack

All thanks to that DORK who called it in! Darwin awards FTW!

Noobs-R-Us

I ordered the 32" Panasonic and it's already shipping! Yay! for $97.99 total.

UchihaSasuke

its that max dudes fault for calling them!!! lol...

urbanturban666

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

my tvs..... my

DesiBoi

@ppl talking about being charged: look again, its probably in pending as is my charge, itll usually take 2 days for the hold to clear depending on your bank.

krztov

I knew it was going to get canceled. I did it more for a chance at them offering some kind of coupon or something like that.

The big thing is the emails state "...would like to assure you that your credit card has not been charged for this purchase..." but that's a bunch of bull. My card was charged as was my gf's. So I don't know why they're saying we didn't get charged. It better be refunded real quick.

xious

if the reader didnt call amazon, everyone would be having a 40$ TV. WHY THE HELL CALL???? GOD DAMN IT!!!

vishal90

@TommySez: actually i feel i deserve the world handed over to me on a 52 inch silver platter and i think it is complete fuckin bullshit that anyone would expect me to even pay $40 to begin with.

lldsandsll

yeah I got the email to, I was really hoping. Oh well, I was anticipating it anyways. They never charged my card though.

SSgtTEX

o well... fun to think about for a few days...

lodleader

I don't think anyone who ordered one, including myself, every thought we deserved one. Just rolled the dice to see if we came up lucky.

PCLoadLetter

Thank you for purchasing the "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" from the Amazon Marketplace. We regret to inform you that our computer system has suffered a major malfunction. Some of the products that we sell and offer matched the wrong items on Amazon.com. Unfortunately we do not carry the "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" and do not have it to ship out. We always strive to provide our customers with the best service possible. We have temporarily closed our store to correct this issue and would like to assure you that your credit card has not been charged for this purchase and the order has been cancelled. We appreciate your understanding of this issue, and only hope that this experience has not hindered your view of Amazon.com and shopping online. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Have a pleasant day.

Sincerely,

Order Processing Center

lodleader

Gee, they cancelled the orders? Who would have guessed that?

Now cue the whiners that think an online glitch somehow means they *deserve* a big-ass TV for $40.

TommySez

i don't know why people are surprised that orders like this get canceled ASAP. it's clearly a mistake and i'm pretty sure it's in their terms of service that they can dump orders anytime in situations like this.

TonyRockyHorror

How long until the masses get pissed and demand some type of kickback?

codykniffen

from Order Processing
to
date Mon, Sep 8, 2008 at 10:16 AM
subject Regarding your purchase of "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV"
hide details 10:16 AM (14 minutes ago)

Reply

Thank you for purchasing the "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" from the Amazon Marketplace. We regret to inform you that our computer system has suffered a major malfunction. Some of the products that we sell and offer matched the wrong items on Amazon.com. Unfortunately we do not carry the "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" and do not have it to ship out. We always strive to provide our customers with the best service possible. We have temporarily closed our store to correct this issue and would like to assure you that your credit card has not been charged for this purchase and the order has been cancelled. We appreciate your understanding of this issue, and only hope that this experience has not hindered your view of Amazon.com and shopping online. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Have a pleasant day.

Sincerely,

Order Processing Center

shugo

Oh well :-) The "hoping" was fun anyway.

RainyDayInterns

I ordered one and got the same email but they haven't given me my money back onto my card yet. =(

fonixdunmegood

@KStrike155: Whoa whoa whoa!! Are u trying to say that u weren't being serious when u said they should be paying ME $40? Do you know who ME is? U owe me $40 bucks. It would be a shame for anything to happen to this picture of someone's kid.

lldsandsll

@lldsandsll: Yeah, they should be paying YOU $40! Damn money-grubbing capitalists.

In seriousness, though, everyone knew they weren't getting this. It was fun watching though!

KStrike155

Sue Sue Sue!!!

homerjay

I think I am going to move to Mexico, open a Amazon store, and start selling TV's.

Y2KGTP

Eh, you can't blame a guy for trying so i wouldnt call anyone a whiner. Hell, I might even try to get some Kind of residual.

beardedkid

its weird because they said they never had it even though it was obviously being inventoried.

i like how they removed the possibility of leaving feedback.

cotr

It's pretty hard to accidentally post an item on Amazon, so if they got the price wrong (not adding enough zeroes) I'd understand. They, however, are saying they never even carry the actual item. How can someone accidentally post an item they have never or never will carry to their seller account. I think everyone who did it should cancel their cards or accounts immediately.

joebobfunguy

All I know is...

...dammit. That's all I can say.

Stang70Fastback

@beardedkid: Yup. Kinda like the Apple whiners who blindly buy first gen iPhones then complain their compensatory gift cards, or 3G iPhones and continue complaining and sue.....way to lead by example....

taylors_dad

@TommySez:

BINGO, they'll come out of the woodwork too!! Can't hurt to try, but if they bitch about compensation etc. knowing THEY were trying to pull a fast one them selves, screw them. Can't hurt to try, but don't get "all uppity" if it didn't work, unless they don't refund their money or something, that's different entirely.

anyway.....glad I didn't hit my submit button LOL, was so close and then thought, there is just NO way this'll fly. hahhaahah was right

Faslane66

How can someone accidentally post an item they have never or never will carry to their seller account.

Complete guess: but I suspect when a seller removes an item with existing orders, there are a list of reasons they can provide. "I got the price wrong" isn't one of them.

The email everyone got is most likely automated.

Gannoc

Cancelled my order? Dammit! I suppose this lotto ticket I bought the same day isn't any good either...

ripfire

They had a similar mixup with an office chair, 6 bucks for a $600. i got the same email today from myofficesource.

Deals that are too good generally are. But i'll still jump at them. :)

wooties

I got the cancelled order email too, yet they still have my money. I am not a happy bunny about them keeping my money....

diem

About 5 years ago I ordered a 52" Panasonic rear projection lcd with matching stand. It was about $2,500 + $300 for the stand. It was being shipped from NY to Chicago. After 2 weeks a truck dropped off 2 boxes which I signed for. Both boxes contained a tv and they forgot the stand. Of course, I let that mistake slide. Sold it for $2,200 to a friend and bought myself a new $300 stand from local store.

cygnusx8

If anyone is interested I have a 72" high-def set that runs on hopes and dreams, except for the playstation 3 input, that requires the tears of those dreams being dashed to pieces.

Late_Night

@fonixdunmegood:
@diem:

Authorization holds on credit cards usually clear up in a few days.

A lot of people fail to understand how credit cards work... an authorization hold is NOT a charge. Your order was probably not charged because the final charge has not been posted (usaully happens with Amazon with your goods ship). The authorization hold just ensures that there is enough credit (or in the instance with debit cards, actual money) in your account to pay for your goods and it does expire after a few days if the final charge is never posted.

Exception would be debit cards... the authorization hold is actual money taken out of your linked account. If the charge never posts, then you'll get a refund of that money, but it's up to your bank's policies on how long that will take (can be anywhere between 3 days to a few weeks after the "authorization" is released or expires on it's own).

BurntToast

I love how some people got a legit cancellation email with a detailed description of what happened, and I got some 2-sentence bullshit (the email in the post). Sure, I didn't think it would 100% work, but I was really hopeful. I think everyone should receive SOME sort of compensation since they basically let a TON of customers down.

PC+Mac Coexist

Sounds good. Didn't get the TV (like we thought we wouldn't) and we didn't get our money tied up in the legal process. I'm good with that.

ttech10

oh well all is well....wouldnt want my 42" full hd getting a minority complex anyway

Whisssper

I understand them canceling the orders... The part I don't agree with is lying about them not carrying the products...

.Trenchant.

@MayorBee is getting what plants crave: "and what is this fairly mundane detail!?"

zenpoet

According to the link in the article, it can now be added to your shopping cart for $1,803.99. [You save $496.00 (22%)]

ideaman2020

@hadees: Godspeed!

PC+Mac Coexist

see they just flat lied, they do. why cant they just say they F'ed up and be done with it. Give me back my 500 back on my credit card before i get really pissed and start calling their asses.

lodleader

I don't think I deserve a 52-inch TV for $40 bucks their pricing error isn't my problem. Amazon does have the right to cancel their items due to a pricing error however according to their terms that doesn't extend to myofficesource.net. In addition amazon's policy for sellers clearly states...

For sales where a Seller lists goods at a fixed price ("fixed price sales"), the Seller is obligated to sell the goods at the listed price to Buyers who meet the Seller's terms. By listing an item in a fixed price sale or by auction, you represent and warrant to prospective Buyers that you have the right and ability to sell, and that the listing is accurate, current, and complete and is not misleading or otherwise deceptive.

Now Amazon does say that their 3rd party sellers might have different terms of service for mispriced items but looking at myofficesource.net I found no policy.

Doing further research and reading this paper...

[www.lctjournal.washington.edu]

That the agreement might actually be legally binding.

hadees

@helldiver: So they did appear on the site? Then they just lied to us: "Unfortunately we do not carry the "Sharp Aquos LC52D64U 52-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV" and do not have it to ship out."

PC+Mac Coexist

on their defense, those Sharp TVs did not ever appear for sale on myofficesource.com

helldiver

Those in charge of sacking those responsible for the hacked server have also also been sacked.

SigmundTheSeaMonster

The issue may not have been the retailer's fault. It could have been a glitch in importing a product file on Amazon's end. Really it could be any number of things. However malicious desire to screw customers usually isn't one of them.

Xavoc

From the "Sell Your Products on Amazon" site:

What is the A-to-z Guarantee program?
The A-to-z Guarantee Program is designed to handle situations where a customer either never received a product or received a product that is materially different from what was ordered or expected. We ask customers to first contact the merchant when they have a problem. If the merchant fails to resolve the problem, the customer can file an A-to-z claim. When Amazon.com receives the claim, we send the merchant an automated email detailing the claim which requests a response withbasic information about the order and the fulfillment process. Amazon.com will then determine how the claim will be settled which may include reimbursement of the order to the customer, at the merchant's expense.

So, worth submitting a claim?

GarouDiams

@Purple Dave:

I understand your point. And no, didn't really expect to get a TV at that price. Just going to keep an eye until the pending charge leaves my card.

I have a big issue in that Amazon.com completely made the order disappear. Other than the two e-mails (one to *confirm* and one to *cancel* there is no "paper trail"... there is no evidence for me to point at.

Really, for PRs sake I believe they should have some sort of raffle for the X number of people who thought they got a deal here and ship let's say... 5-10 at the price promised. That would go a long way to helping people feel better.

GarouDiams

@GarouDiams:
No, not when you've received an e-mail informing you that the order has been cancelled. The A-to-Z claim is for when your order is reported as having shipped, and you are charged for it, but you never get it. We're _already_ getting reimbursed, so as far as Amazon is concerned, case closed. Except that if they do end up listing those TVs through myOfficeSource in the near future, they could sorta be open for lawsuits based on their provided excuse for why they aren't honoring the orders.

Purple Dave

@Purple Dave:

Yeah, for the record called American Express and they show a pending authorization on my account. Said to keep an eye on it.

GarouDiams

@BurntToast:
No, even with a debit card an auth-hold only secures a quantity of money so you can't spend it. It doesn't actually remove it from your account (I regularly sign on to online banking to see that my account balance and my available balance differ by the amount of one or more charges that haven't actually cleared yet). The only thing is, since it does actually put a hold on a specific amount of cash, you can't accrue charges that would require that additional balance without incurring overdraft charges or somesuch. This is why they tell you not to make certain charges on debit, like hotel rooms and some gas stations. As soon as you reserve a hotel room, they'll probably place a hold on the room charge, plus a security deposit against damage/theft/minibar-usage, even if you won't be staying at that hotel for a month or more. And some gas stations have been cited for placing a $75 hold on your account, and leaving it there for up to three business days, the instant you swipe your card at the pump (fortunately, I never have that problem with my credit union and BP Gas, as I can fill up a few miles from home and the actual charge will have already cleared by the time I can get back).

Anyways, I place an order for the 46", just for kicks and giggles (and the _slim_ chance that it might show up), but my card never even showed a hold for that amount, nor did I ever get the second confirmation e-mail, so I'm guessing that Amazon already had an idea that something was up by the time I got my order placed (it was after the slightly-cheaper 52" model was already, temporarily, listing as sold out, so...) and never put the charge through. Keep in mind that every single charge that they actually did submit (and not just place a hold on) would cost them a percentage fee, which I'd guess they now lose due to this pricing flub. Possibly twice, if they also get hit on the refund process.

@Late_Night:
I'll take it, but I'll need to pay you with the smell of my paper bills, and the sound of my pocket change clinking together. Is that okay?

@PC+Mac Coexist:
To get the budget deal, you had to click through to the seller list and pick to buy it directly from myOfficeSource.com. They weren't the default seller to begin with (at least not when I went there), and they're not currently listed as a seller now.

@hadees:
To the contrary, that page you cited shows exactly how Amazon has set themselves up to prevent pricing errors from being legally binding. Specifically, they state that it's not a legally binding contract until the item ships, which you effectively agree to when you place your order (even if you don't realize that you did). Aside from pricing issues, this is a sound policy just in terms of stock control. Otherwise you could easily end up with a dozen legally binding purchase contracts on an item for which you only have one copy left to ship, and no available supply that you can order from to fill the remaining orders.

Purple Dave

once the charge has hit my credit card (including holds) they enter a contract obligation i know it might not be cost effective to sue, but im sure if we all say we are going to start a class action lawsuit they might break down and give us something. i got the tv and the calculator, i understand they might not have the tv but how do they not have the calculator.

lets just watch the website and if any of the products we purchase re-appear on the site we then unleash a world of hurt!

masachris

I think we should get some sort of compensation
26" Tv's anyone?

UndeadOverlord

I would settle for a gift card, 20% off coupon....something at this point.

Or give me my 3 TV's I ordered, got in my cart, and was waiting on shipment.

Y2KGTP

Got an email back from Amazon after I inquired as to why my order was canceled (as if I didn't already know :P)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for writing to us at Amazon.com with your concern.

I'm sorry to hear that the item you've ordered was canceled as it's no longer
available from your seller.

I've checked the order details for order (#002-7670530-9142639) and can confirm
that you were not charged for this order. The seller has canceled the order.

While an occasional stock-out is bound to happen, we do require sellers to keep
these to a minimum. If we find a seller's out-of-stock sales are excessive, we
will take action.

Even though your purchase was made from one of our third-party sellers, we
realize that it may influence your decision to visit our stores again.

The sellers who offer items on our site work very hard to maintain their
inventories, but occasionally an item listed on our site will no longer be
available when your order is completed.

We do want to make sure that our site is safe and convenient for all buyers and
sellers, and for that reason there are rules governing the listing of certain
items.

Please know that we do take the feedback and performance records of sellers very
seriously. We monitor seller performance and we will close an account when
warranted.

Please note, we want everyone who visits Amazon.com Marketplace to have a safe,
enjoyable experience. Not only do participants in transactions review one
another, but Amazon.com also provides oversight and will suspend participants
who violate our terms of use. Credit card information is held on Amazon.com's
secure server, and isn't shared with Marketplace sellers, ever.

If a transaction with a third-party seller is unsuccessful and you're unable to
resolve the dispute with your seller, you may be eligible for the A-to-z
Guarantee. For a detailed description of the A-to-z Guarantee, please visit:

[www.amazon.com]

Again, I'm sorry for the inconvenience you have experienced. I have included
additional links below if you are interested in more information about
purchasing from third-party sellers on Amazon.com. We hope to see you again soon.

***********************
HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT BUYING ITEMS ON AMAZON MARKETPLACE?
To learn more about buying items at Amazon Marketplace, please visit:
[www.amazon.com]

*****
HOW CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT BUYING ITEMS FROM AMAZON MERCHANTS?
To learn more about Amazon Merchants, please visit:
[www.amazon.com]

*****
HOW SECURE IS A MARKETPLACE OR MERCHANT ORDER?
If you purchase your item through the Amazon.com web site, using Amazon
Payments, we guarantee your purchase (some restrictions apply). Find out more
about our A-z Guarantee:
[www.amazon.com]

*****

Please let us know if this e-mail resolved your question:

If yes, click here:
[www.amazon.com]
If not, click here:
[www.amazon.com]

Please note: this e-mail was sent from an address that cannot accept incoming e-mail.

To contact us about an unrelated issue, please visit the Help section of our web
site.

Best regards,

Sharadha D.
Amazon.com Customer Service
==============================
Check your order and more: [www.amazon.com]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How do you like that bullshit?

PC+Mac Coexist

I can't imagine how some of you are upset about this. You purchased these items AFTER you knew there was something OBVIOUSLY errant with Amazon's posting. Don't play dumb and pretend you deserve a 52" tv for $100. Be glad they're refunding your money. Thanks for playing!

SouthendXGF

I think what people need to understand is that we played the odds. I don't think anyone that put an order in really thought they would get the damn TV. However it would have been nice. I put in the order and was surprised it took till late Monday to get the cancel order.

As for the refund they say it will take about 2 to 3 days.

JackMatt

@JackMatt: Yeah, but you have to realize a lot of us weren't playing the "odds" as much as we were playing the "system." TBH, I was almost positive that the order would be canceled. HOWEVER, the whole "Truth in Advertising" thing had me hoping that they could be forced into honoring the deal if you called and argued. That's what I'm wondering about.

Stang70Fastback

@Stang70Fastback:
i agree. i wasn't hoping that it might work out... i was banking on the error. i found something on the ftc.gov site that makes me think they have to honor the price they listed.
i say sue... and i don't care who thinks i'm a jerk. i was at the right place, at the right time, with my money out. now they are saying that they don't even carry the tv's??? i call b.s.
i went to their website and saw them. although the site was crappier than any other i've ever seen, they clearly had them for sale. plus they had a set number of them "in stock".

i haven't had any order cancellation notice from amazon or myofficesource AND my card has no evidence of any transaction pending or processed. but i DO HAVE every page where the items were listed copied and documented. HA! there's your paper trail...

who's coming with me???

clumsy_bludgeoning

@masachris: Contract law is a lot more complicated (and reasonable) than that. If one party makes a mistake, and if the other party would have reason to believe there was a mistake (as in, not just a small discount in the price of the TV), then a judge would probably rule the contract (or specific clause of the contract) unconscionable. One-sided contracts are very much frowned upon by the courts.

No seller "has to" honor obvious and egregious pricing mistakes. If they do, then it's by the seller's own goodwill interest in maintaining a customer; a customer who intentionally takes advantage of a seller isn't much better than a thief, and really not worth keeping from an intelligent seller's point of view. Now if the seller *intentionally misled* you, then you might have a case of bait and switch. But that's a real stretch here. You'd have to show that there was extreme carelessness or fraudulent intent.

So go ahead and take them to court, and get smacked down within five minutes by a laughing judge who will then make you pay Amazon.com's legal costs.

BrandonAbell

looks like extreme carelessness to me. how many flat panels did they have listed? somewhere in the neighborhood of 6, right?
and i'd like to say that amazon isn't the company i'd target. it would be myofficesource.
anybody still want to make a move here? let me know. i still haven't had a cancellation notice from amazon or myofficesource, and haven't had a shipping confirmation or charge... so it seems my order is still processing.

clumsy_bludgeoning