Fan Reaction: Problems With New U2.com Memberships*

By Devlin Smith, Contributing Editor
2004.12

I was definitely more of a casual U2 fan before 2001′s Elevation tour. After snagging tickets to the group’s first LA appearance that November, I became hooked. I signed up on Zootopia—U2.com’s official message board—and, inspired by stories of ticket presales and members-only CDs, joined Propaganda, the official U2 fan club.

A little less than a year later I got my first, and only, issue of its fan club magazine. For nearly three years there was no official word that Propaganda had disbanded. Even after the compilation book "U2: Propaganda—20 Years of the Official U2 Magazine" came out, no one knew definitively if the fan club was over.

With the launch of the new U2 album came a redesigned U2.com and official word that Propaganda was moving from the print world online. For $40 a year, members could enjoy many of the same benefits old fan club members enjoyed, including presales on tickets for the upcoming tour. As a thank you to all the Propaganda members who, like myself, never got their complete subscriptions fulfilled, membership was offered at half-price. All you had to do was wait for an invitation letter to arrive in the mail.

Letters were sent out the last week of November. Nearly three weeks later, I still haven’t gotten my letter. By scanning Interference.com’s message boards I’ve learned I’m not alone. Dozens of other fans who joined in the last few years (between 2000 and 2002 when Propaganda stopped taking new members) have not received their letters either. Phone calls have been made and e-mails sent to figure out what’s going on. Thus far, it seems no one has received a satisfactory response.

I myself have sent several e-mails with my Propaganda ID number, including one through U2.com’s new web form. Two of those e-mails got me a form e-mail that answered none of my questions. Finally I e-mailed Cecilia Coffey with Principle Management who has promised me she’ll look into this. I’m cautiously optimistic she’ll be able to help me.

Other fans have not gotten such positive responses. Interference.com member Monkey79 has contacted Fanfire, the company now managing U2′s fan club, twice this month. He joined Propaganda in May of 2001, receiving two issues of the fan magazine (half of the four promised subscribers) and was able to get two general admission Elevation tickets through the club. Because he doesn’t have his original Propaganda ID number, Fanfire has not yet been able to track down Monkey79′s information. "I do feel somewhat shafted since I gave them my $20 and didn’t receive a full allotment of issues," he says. "I thought the idea of getting a break on the U2.com membership was cool but it looks like they screwed that up, too."

u2valleygirl, who joined Propaganda in 2001 and only received one magazine, has contacted Fanfire four times. "The first time they told me my letter was on the way, second time same thing," she says. "Third time they could not find me in the database and would have Terri [Panaro, also with Propaganda] call me. Fourth time my name was not in the database, Terri would call me and there was not much I could do. They did not have my number or any record that I had ever joined."

Other fans who joined in 2001, like BostonAnne, anitram, youtwohearts, LarryMullen’s_POPAngel and MissVelvetDress_75, also have not gotten letters and have tried contacting Fanfire to find out why they were left off the member list. "I was told that they used an old database and the letter was sent to my old address, even though I had submitted an address change form to Prop," anitram says. "Then I was told I was not in their system. Then I was told that somebody would give me a call with my new code. Then I was told that there is only one person there handling the codes, but every time I specifically asked for her she was either out or ‘busy.’"

Other fans are experiencing a similar run-around. "I called on December 8 and spoke to a rep," BostonAnne says. "She insisted that I didn’t get my letter because my subscription expired." This wasn’t true in her case, or when MissVelvetDress_75, youtwohearts and myself were told the same thing. "I got the same generic letter saying that they could not find my information and that my membership must have lapsed," youtwohearts says. "I did write them back and said not only did my membership not lapse but they (Propaganda) never even filled their end of the contract. To that I have not received a response."

So what’s a frustrated fan to do? A few have bitten the bullet and joined the new fan club for the full $40 price. "I’ve joined the new Prop at $40," says ascender_RS who has been a member of Propaganda for 17 years and had two issues left on his most recent subscription. "Thankfully to me the $40 isn’t a big deal but I do feel sorry for those who can’t afford to just go out and buy it regardless. Added to the wasted money from their last subscription, it’s really sad to this from this band."

LarryMullen’s_POPAngel, who joined in 2001 and received two magazine and priority tickets for Elevation, also got tired of the wait and joined the club at full price. "I already have [joined] after being told that I would eventually get my Prop code and be eligible for a $20 discount," she says. "Of course, that hasn’t happened yet and doesn’t look as if it will."

BostonAnne has also been promised she’d get a refund if she joined at full price now. anitram, though, got a different story. "I was told that even if I joined for $40 they were not required to pay me back the $20 later," she says.

At least one fan has had enough. "No, I will not join the new Prop," says MissVelvetDress_75, who joined in 2001 and received an Elevation presale letter after the tour was already sold out. "I am very disappointed with the level of service that has been provided to the loyal fans of U2. I feel that our memberships should have been honored and there should be more assistance to helping fans like myself out who joined Propaganda in 2001."

Even for those who have joined the new fan club, though, there is concern over whether this membership will get them what they really want—concert tickets. "What I would like them to do [is] fix the problems," says youtwohearts. "What is going to happen when tickets go on sale?"

With a ticket announcement expected in a few weeks, Fanfire is undoubtedly being flooded with orders for U2.com memberships, both from brand new members and people who belonged to Propaganda. In the midst of such a flurry, what can they do? "I just believe they need to get more people to work on the Propaganda problem," says U2SJ, who joined in 2000 and received two issues and Elevation tickets. "Multiple people at Fanfire tell me they only have one person working on all the Prop issues. That is ridiculous considering how many people are having problems."

For some, though, this latest snag is just the kind of thing they’ve come to expect from Propaganda. "The one failing of the magazine from the start has been it’s unreliable nature," says ascender_RS. "There has never been an easy way to get in touch with them to query your subscription details, it just smacks of unprofessionalism. In this day and age a band like U2 should be able to put a wee bit of time and money into getting a professionally-run fan club."

Regardless of whether they’ve joined the new fan club or not, this group of fans all agree that something must be done. "[I'd like to see] a full refund for a Prop members who either signed up with a code or who signed up for the $40 after being led to believe they could later get the discount," LarryMullen’s_POPAngel says. "The manner in which this was handled has been atrocious."

In the meantime I’ll keep checking my mailbox, hoping that through some miracle my letter does show up. Hopefully it will come before the upcoming tour has sold out.