An Outraged Open Letter

[teebee]

Yes, I was a Propaganda Member since 2000.

Yes, I called the 1-800 number today and spent roughly 3 hours on hold.

But no, I was not on the list that Propaganda provided the fan club, so I am effectively out of luck. No amount of information was changing the most useless CSR's opinion that "sorry there's nothing he can do, I am not on the list"

Yes, I had a code, and when all the east coast dates were sold out in a matter of nanoseconds, I gave that code to my sister so she could get a ticket in Denver.

Now, what with no code, and no record of my Propaganda membership, I am out of luck.

I am probably more pissed off about the Propaganda issue than the fact I spent $40 for a U2.com membership - hey at least my sister got arguably the best seats in the house.

The problem is NOT solved when I can't get what is rightly mine.

I live in the best city in the world to see live bands and I get to see many bands a year for a fair price, at a decent venue, who play the songs I most want to hear.

But when I can't see U2 who I have given THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS to in my life, as well as turned countless numbers of friends on to, something just isn't right.

Everything smacks of laziness and greed. Real lame.

Time to move on. Thanks for the memories. You will never see another dime from me again. The joke's on me there, I am sure.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

not to be a douche but you should've called the 800 number before today

 

[teebee]

I did. It's been on hold every single time I've called. I only waited this long because today is now or never.

oh and thanks for not being a douche.

 

[Popmartijn]

And it seems you did get tickets.

 

[teebee]

Ugh. C'mon, give me a break.

I spent three hours on hold and you guys are beating me up over minutiae.

I gave the code to my sister, in Denver, as a second show went on sale and NYC/NJ were sold out. At the time, it was only a guess as to when U2 would come back to the area. The supply in Denver about matched the demand.

Whatever. If you guys feel I don't have a legitimate gripe, so be it. But the fact remains, I earned the propaganda code and I don't have it. Everything else is moot.

 

[Grindstone]

for the record, I'll say that I've been in Propaganda since it's inception.. and was also a subscriber to their "fan club" which was the U2 Info Service before Propaganda.. (have all of the original U2 Info Service magazines still in mint condition)

I never got a code from fanfare for Propaganda. Called them three times, got the runaround everytime.. different stories from "just mailed out more" to "problems converting the names over" to "can't find any info, I'll take your name and give it to my supervisor"

no one ever helped me.

the tour announcement was immediate so I called a fourth time and was told I 'better go ahead and buy the $40 fee and we'll credit you if we can find your name'.

nothing ever happened.

I saw a post here a month or so ago, with an email for people with this problem. I emailed that person, had a response immediately, they gave me my code. I wrote back and said "ok so now how do I get credit" they wrote back said I would see the credit within 48 business hours.

never happened.

then about 5 days later the presale fiasco happened, never heard from them again.

so here we are.. still unrecognized as a Propaganda member.. never had a chance to look back into this because they just announced this scenario a few days ago.. and I got no chance at this fall leg.

So I can say, fanfare has been a complete joke, never helped me and never followed thru on what they said.

I did get lucky and got GAs to PHX so I'm happy. but i just wanted to point out that there are certainly flaws and it wasn't without trying to fix it. It got to be so time consuming and frustrating I just quit.. and it wasnt until now that it actually hurt me b/c I wouldn't mind getting GAs to Atlanta or DC, since I can actually drive to those shows. But its ok..

not complaining.. just saying that some former Propaganda members like myself.. lifelong members definitely got the shaft.

for the record..
I never got my keychain either.

but I'll see you in PHX!

 

[isabelle_guns]

not to be a douche but you should've called the 800 number before today

I agree, preperation is the key

 

[dsmith2904]

Have you tried e-mailing sbentley@signaturesnet.com. Contacting them worked out for a lot of people here (myself included) who got nowhere on the phone.

 

[zooradio]

Wow. It almost seems like there are two seperate Fanfires. I, too, was in the same boat as a former Prop subscriber back in December. I got no letter with the discount code, and I called Fanfire and they took my information and no one ever got back to me. Then, once I got wind that Prop members were going to be taken care of, I called on Saturday (3/5) and got right through and told a very friendly lady my dillema. She took my info and said I'd get an e-mail on Monday. I also e-mailed U2.com under the "Contact" link stating my case. I got an e-mail back in about 2 hours saying my status had been changed to Prior Propaganda. It seems like the key was timing. By the time a lot of people called the lines were already jammed.

 

[sneeb]

Yes, I love this group. Nothing will change that.

But also yes, I have been a Propaganda member since 1998.

I spent a total of four hours on the phone talking to various Fanfire reps who assured me the problem would be "taken care of" only I never received a code in time for the pre-sale and after calling today was told that they couldn't find my information.

No tickets, no Prop-level membership, no code, and no keychain. *sigh* at least the hold music was good.

 

[JOFO]

makes my stomach turn.

 

[teebee]

I agree, preperation is the key

Yes I tried emailing sbentley. And I was very polite to the bonehead who answered the phone at fanfair, explained the situation very nicely. He wasn't one of the helpful ones. After waiting on hold for 3 hours, calling right back up again is not the first thing on my mind.

Good on those of you who got lucky with a sympathetic customer service rep.

sad it had to boil down to luck and sympathy instead of just keeping accurate records on who was a member of Prop. Or keeping my name, address, date of signup, anything ...

I've seen U2 5 times, including 2x in the heart last time. Great memories. Guess my time's up with this band. Sad.

 

[Yahweh]

You are the one that is making that choice and still have an opportunity in the general sale. If you are going to stop listening to U2s music because of the way fanfare operates I am affraid the joke is on you.

I am sympathetic to the people that didnt get tickets or arent being confirmed as Propoganda members but it isnt the end of the world, but whether you listen to the music anymore I guess that choice is ultimately yours.

 

[U2Fanatic4ever]

You are the one that is making that choice and still have an opportunity in the general sale. If you are going to stop listening to U2s music because of the way fanfare operates I am affraid the joke is on you.

I am sympathetic to the people that didnt get tickets or arent being confirmed as Propoganda members but it isnt the end of the world, but whether you listen to the music anymore I guess that choice is ultimately yours.

Amen to that! Thanks Yahweh! ..my sentiments exactly!

 

[Faith]

Wow. It almost seems like there are two seperate Fanfires. I, too, was in the same boat as a former Prop subscriber back in December. I got no letter with the discount code, and I called Fanfire and they took my information and no one ever got back to me. Then, once I got wind that Prop members were going to be taken care of, I called on Saturday (3/5) and got right through and told a very friendly lady my dillema. She took my info and said I'd get an e-mail on Monday. I also e-mailed U2.com under the "Contact" link stating my case. I got an e-mail back in about 2 hours saying my status had been changed to Prior Propaganda. It seems like the key was timing. By the time a lot of people called the lines were already jammed.

EXACT same scenario and timing for me!!! Almost identical, I received my emails on Monday.

 

[Jersey2miami]

teebee,
i too have been a longtime member of the U2 fan family. The first album (yes kiddies, album) i ever bought with my own money was WAR at age 13. Although i first saw the band in 1987, I did not join Prop when the getting was good. I've been to multiple concerts at multiple venues since then, and have never until recently been anywhere near the stage at a U2 show. Elevation was the first show which I was actually ON THE FLOOR! I suck at getting good tix, I even sat in the 300 section at POPMART in Giant's stadium. NOW THAT IS BAD TICKET MANAGEMENT!!!!
Despite it all, bottom line, this band makes me happy. Their music lifts my soul.
I don't claim to be world's greatest U2 fan in the U2 universe, but I wouldn't miss seeing them regardless of where i am in the venue. I hope to read your post the night (morning) after your Vertigo show and feel you exhale "god that was incredible..."
lots of love, good luck.

 

[PM_Tango]

I was a Propaganda Members since 2000. I moved in 2001. I attempted to contact Propaganda about two years ago and got an email back saying the club was being disbanded and the lady really did not know what was going to happen.

Earlier this year, I had not gotten any communciation from Propaganda, I went ahead and paid the $40. I did not buy tickets to the first leg since the Texas dates were not on the first leg.

After I became aware that a Propaganda presale was likely I contacted Fanfire to see if they could find me in the Propaganda database. The call occured in mid February. I got through quickly, the call was long and the lady I spoke to was not that familar with the whole Propaganda situation. She was mainly aware of the discounted Propagand membership sale that had occured.

Anyway, they found me on the list, noted my record. Then I waited.

I waited through half of Monday, without getting an e-mail from confirming that I could take part in today's Presale. So, I started calling.

First, call was 30 minutes on hold before being cut off.

Second call was exactly the same.

Third call, I spoke to a lady, she took my name and said somebody would call me back.

A few hours went by, I called and got the same lady, she said I would be called back within 8 hours. If my story checked out, things would be ok, but she could not promise anything. She told me something very crucial though, that customer service is 24x7 right now.

Around 10PM last night, I called again, I spoke to a different lady, she repeated the same story, confirmed that I was on the list and said that the "Fan Club Specialist" would get to me in time. Again, no promises.

6AM, CST last night, I wake up and called again. Got through in five minutes. Spoke to a very nice lady. They were less busy, this time I stayed on line and everything was resolved. I even got $20 credit back. Icing on the cake, I realized I could by tickets to two shows.

Today at 10PM, I bought GA to both Dallas and Houston.

Not tyring to brag, I barely made it.

My advice to those who have been shut out. Don't quite. Additional dates are going to be added, you can bank on that. Look at the schedule, they have built room for more shows. It stands to reason that past Propaganda members will have a first crack at those shows.

They were able to trace me by my former address. I would keep working the situation. Some of you may be SOL, but I also feel that more of your were in my situation, you were just a little late. I barely made it. If I had failed, I would be trying to hit the second Dallas and Houston shows.

Good luck, it ain't over. If you are Past Propaganda, you should not give up. The status is likely to be helpful in the future.

Nathan

 

[BonoIsMyMuse]

The problem is NOT solved when I can't get what is rightly mine.

I live in the best city in the world to see live bands and I get to see many bands a year for a fair price, at a decent venue, who play the songs I most want to hear.

But when I can't see U2 who I have given THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS to in my life, as well as turned countless numbers of friends on to, something just isn't right.

Everything smacks of laziness and greed. Real lame.

A lot of people have given U2 a lot of money in their lifetimes. I certainly have. But I also realize that being a U2 fan, no matter how loyal, doesn't guarantee me a ticket for every single tour. Or any tour, for that matter.

A lot of times, whether it's fair or not, it comes down to luck. I've had nosebleed seats before. I've had no seats at all to several shows I badly wanted to see. This time, I got lucky and got GA's in the general sale. Who knows, I may never get to see U2 live again, for whatever reason, but that's not going to change the fact that they're my favorite band and that their music has deeply changed my life and a lot of others' lives, too.

I don't understand why you seem to think you're entitled to a ticket. U2 has worked awfully hard to solve the problems from the first leg presale, and as a lot of people on here today have reported, they've done a very nice job of that. But there are still going to be mistakes. Yes, it sucks that you didn't get a second use of your code as you should have, and that maybe you're now not going to get tickets. But you haven't lost a vital organ, you haven't lost a limb or your vision or anything but $40, which technically you didn't lose, if your sister used your code to get tickets.

U2 is not purposely setting out to screw anyone over. I don't understand why a lot of people have been implying things like that lately. The fanclub was meant to give fans a better chance at getting tickets, but it's not a guarantee.

There are plenty of things going on in the world right now that people should be angry about--the war in Iraq, for starters, or the AIDS crisis. I just don't think not getting U2 tickets should be one of them.

Sorry--I'm stepping off my soapbox now.

 

[cmb737]

Myself, my wife, and 7 other friends/U2 acquaintances I know were in the same boat. We just didn't stop. I emailed daily for two weeks and called every night.

I didn't take no for an answer. I talked to every single person possible at all hours of the day.

Got my code and my 2 GA's for Portland today.