Woman unable to buy iPad with cash (news story)

[vastoholic]

Ok, just saw a commercial for a news story on tonight about a woman in Palo Alto who wanted to buy her first computer she could ever afford. She apparently tried to buy an iPad with cash at the Palo Alto store but was denied and according to the snippet, another bystander helped in changing the Apple store policy. This is all the info I have from the short 30 second clip on tv.

A few things I'm confused about with this story:

One: why was she denied because she was paying with cash? I paid for my first iPad in June in cash no problems at the Walnut Creek, CA store. When was this an issue? Or is it store specific?

Two, I hope she has access to a friends computer if she's buying her first computer as an iPad. And hopefully the store informs her that if she wants updates and backups, she will need another computer to do so.

And three: why is this breaking news with it's own tv spot and a dedicated time slot on the news? Seriously, it looked like Apple was paying 7 Live (just heard the news station name again) to run this story. The tv spot had background music similar to the iPhone or Mac vs PC commercials.

 

[Mitchrapp]

Ok, just saw a commercial for a news story on tonight about a woman in Palo Alto who wanted to buy her first computer she could ever afford. She apparently tried to buy an iPad with cash at the Palo Alto store but was denied and according to the snippet, another bystander helped in changing the Apple store policy. This is all the info I have from the short 30 second clip on tv.

A few things I'm confused about with this story:

One: why was she denied because she was paying with cash? I paid for my first iPad in June in cash no problems at the Walnut Creek, CA store. When was this an issue? Or is it store specific?

Two, I hope she has access to a friends computer if she's buying her first computer as an iPad. And hopefully the store informs her that if she wants updates and backups, she will need another computer to do so.

And three: why is this breaking news with it's own tv spot and a dedicated time slot on the news? Seriously, it looked like Apple was paying 7 Live (just heard the news station name again) to run this story. The tv spot had background music similar to the iPhone or Mac vs PC commercials.

I tired an iphone once, the first one. I was a interested a bit. They would not take cash or a debit card. They needed a credit card in which I haven't had for years. So I can believe it.

 

[aristobrat]

AFAIK, that happened back in May. Is your news doing a best-of 2010 stories recap or something?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/18/apple-store-rejects-cash_n_580357.html

Apple had a policy for not doing cash sales for high-volume products when they have a short supply (iPhones and iPads). Essentially, they were trying to solve the issue where scalpers were hiring people to go into the store and buy as many iPads as they could with cash. Apple limited the amount of iPads you could purchase at a time to two, and the scalpers simply started sending in more people. So then Apple required that all sales be done with a credit card that contained a persons name and used a back-end system to track purchases via credit cards, and not authorize a card that's already purchased two iPads before to buy anymore.

 

[vastoholic]

@aristobrat, understandable. I don't remember if they mentioned a name but that has to be the same story. It definitely wasn't a recap. They made it seem an event that just happened this month or something. How strange. Well I apologize that this is an old story. I still find it strange that is making it onto televised news.

 

[mikethebigo]

This story was from earlier this year. The resolution was that Apple changed their policy so you can buy with cash, but you must register the iPad with a free apple ID in store. That way, they could still track purchasers while allowing all different payment methods.

 

[Don Kosak]

Yeah, it sounds exactly like that story from 6 months ago or so.

Apple did relax the policy after the hubbub.

By the way, the non-cash thing was mostly driven by AT&T and the requirement for a line of credit to verify eligibility for a wireless contract. I had thought it only applied to iPhones.

 

[Ciclismo]

@aristobrat, understandable. I don't remember if they mentioned a name but that has to be the same story. It definitely wasn't a recap. They made it seem an event that just happened this month or something. How strange. Well I apologize that this is an old story. I still find it strange that is making it onto televised news.

Slow news day (read: nothing else sensationalist enough to sell ad space had happened).

Happens all the time - I often come across a "news" story in the papers, TV or radio which is weeks, if not months old. The biggest give away for such stories is that there is never mention or any reference to a date in the entire piece.

 

[coochiekuta]

This story was from earlier this year. The resolution was that Apple changed their policy so you can buy with cash, but you must register the iPad with a free apple ID in store. That way, they could still track purchasers while allowing all different payment methods.

just curious, why they need to be tracked? its a good thing thats not a very reliable way to track.

 

[Consultant]

Because supplies were limited, and people were buying up supplies with cash to resale. Using credit only results in limited number per credit card.

They did that with original iPhone too due to it's such a hot item.

Also, the story is 6 months old. Apple has changed the policy since then. Story is false. Bystander did not help change policy. Apple changed it due to the publicity.

FYI, no date, no reference = FUD