How do I get a refund for iTunes Match?

Dec 16, 2011 2:46 PM in response to bukharin

I understand your point, and I've actually called Apple a few times this week with my access issues - not so much to rant (because that really doesn't do anyone any good) but mainly to document my issues in case I need to escalate later. And also to offer suggestions on how to improve the service.

First off, we really aren't early adopters - you assume that this is like a piece of hardware with bugs and that will improve with firmware updates. But with a piece of hardware, be it an iPod or a Mac Mini, you OWN it. It's tangible and generally functions as is, regardless. But this is a service, not a piece of hardware. I would equate is more like a cable service. You are paying for a yearly subscription and once that subscription is up, the service is over. Granted, you do get Matched tracks if you are smart enough to download them in advance, but it's still primarily a service for most people - the ability to upload to iCloud and access your system from other iTunes devices or an iPod/iPad.

With that in mind, frequent outages like the ones I've seen all week imo should not be tolerated. Even this early in the game. What concerns me most is that their systems were already problematic but someone over there still decided that rolling this out to more countries was a good idea - imo, they should have stretched this out more to avoid more outages. As for those of us suffering right now, I wouldn't necessarily ask for a refund yet but imo Apple should be 1) giving their L1 reps a better idea about when these issues occur so as to at least alleviate call volume and 2) should at least consider a small credit (or maybe a service extension) of some kind for their Day One GA subscribers as a way of saying "we screwed up and here's our way of saying we're sorry".

I think something like that would go a long away as we wait patiently for them to stabilize their environment while the clock is ticking on our subscription. My two cents.

Dec 27, 2011 9:23 AM in response to TheVamp

I hope everyone had a nice Holiday. Here is an update to my Quixote like quest to obtain a refund from Apple due to my dissatisfaction with their iMatch product.

Just to bring everyone up to speed, I had offered to take my refund in the form of "in store credits" so they could keep my money, and I in return, could actually get something that I could enjoy (music, movie, whatever). They were kind enough to give me four in store credits. After trying to get the iMatch product to work (one more time) and failing miserably (the service just turns itself off after a few minutes or so), I requested a refund again.

Much to my surprise, it looks like they are going to give me one. Here is the final note on this little saga.

Hi Rick,

My name is Stephanie and I am a Senior Advisor withiTunes Store Customer Support. I understand that you would like to cancel youriTunes Match subscription and receive a refund.

Please keep in mind that if you cancel your iTunes Matchsubscription, you will no longer have access to your matched or uploaded songsin your iCloud library. In addition, if you receive a refund, you will not beable to subscribe to iTunes Match again until a year from the refund date.

If you would still like to cancel, just reply to thisemail with the billing address and the last four digits of the credit card onthe account. If you do not have a credit card associated with your account, youwill need to provide the phone number listed on your account. Upon receivingyour response, Apple will verify your information, cancel your iTunes Matchsubscription and issue you a full refund for $24.99. You will receive an emailconfirmation in regards to any refund.

I look forward to your reply and resolving this matterfor you as soon as possible. Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Stephanie

Senior Advisor

iTunes Store/Mac App Store Customer Support

Please note: Please note: Mon, Wed-Fri 1:00 PM-11:30 PMEST OFF Sun, Tues, Sat

Larry,

Thank you for the in store credits, but I think there hasbeen some confusion. I-Match still doesnot work for me (does for short bursts), and I would either like my money backor in store credit for the full amount of imatch. Thank you.

This is getting absurd Larry, and I am starting to getvery angry about this whole mess. Pleaseescalate immediately.

-----Original Message-----

From: iTunes Store [mailto:iTunesStoreSupport@apple.com]

Sent: Monday, December 19, 2011 5:21 AM

To: rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Subject: RE: iTunes Store; Follow-up: 179951215

Follow-Up: 179951215

Hello again,

I wanted to send a quick note to see if you are stillexperiencing any difficulties with the iTunes Store. Resolving your issue isimportant to me, so please don't hesitate to reply if you need any furtherassistance.

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

Hello Rick,

This is Larry again, from iTunes Store Customer Support.First and foremost, I would like to extend an apology for the delayed responseto your email.

iTunes Support endeavors to send a reply within 48 hours;however, due to new product releases and features for the iTunes Store we areexperiencing higher volumes than normal. We appreciate your patience andunderstanding.

Rick, I understand that iTunes Match, still isn'tfunctioning properly, again I would like to sincerely apologize for anyinconvenience that you may have experienced. I realize your concern regardingyour iTunes Store purchases functioning properly, and I am happy to assist.

Rick, for your inconvenience, I have issued 4 replacementsong credits to your account "rick.zimmerman@comcast.net",which you can use to buy the individual songs of your choice from the iTunesStore.

When you sign in to the iTunes Store with this account,the song credits will appear by your account name in the upper-right corner ofthe iTunes Store window. The next time you buy individual songs from the iTunesStore, your song credits will be used as payment until all credits have beenused or have expired. Please note that song credits are not able to be used forpurchasing songs that are listed as Album Only.

If you don't see the credits, choose Sign Out from theStore pull-down menu at the top. Then choose Sign In from the Store menu, enteryour account name and password, then click Sign In. Your song credits shouldnow appear next to your account name.

Rick, again sorry for the delayed response, please let meknow if you have any other questions or concerns. I'll be more than happy toassist you with whatever you need. Thank you for the chance to improve youriTunes experience and have a wonderful day.

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you. Youmay receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

Hi Larry!

Still not using that iMatch product as it effs up mymachines as soon as I turn it on. Howabout giving me an in store credit and just calling it a day? That way I don't feel like I just threw 25bucks in the toilet, and never do business with Apple again (in part because oftheir terrible product, and poor customer service). This way you get to keep my money (as we willpick up a song or two), and Apple gets to keep me as a customer.

If the answer is still no Larry, who over there can Iescalate this to?

Certainly there is someone in the building that rememberswhat good customer service and quality products mean?

Thanks Larry.

-----Original Message-----

From: iTunes Store [mailto:iTunesStoreSupport@apple.com]

Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2011 12:04 PM

To: rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Subject: RE: iTunes Store; Follow-up: 179951215

Hello Rick,

This is Larry again, from iTunes Store Customer Support.,I would like to apologize for the mix up.

Have a wonderful day.

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

Larry,

You sent this to me in error. Have a nice day!

Rick Zimmerman

-----Original Message-----

From: iTunes Store [mailto:iTunesStoreSupport@apple.com]

Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2011 6:00 AM

To: rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Subject: RE: iTunes Store; Follow-up: 179951215

Hello Sarah,

This is Larry, again with iTunes Customer Support. Iunderstand that the movie "Morning Glory", is not showing in your"My Purchases" link. Being a customer myself, I can understand yourconcern and look forward to you getting your movie back.

No worries, I have posted the item back to your account.

If you have a computer, please follow these steps todownload the item:

1) Make sure you're using the latest version of iTunes.It can be downloaded free of charge from the Apple website:

http://www.apple.com/itunes/download

Note: Installing the latest version of iTunes will notaffect your library or any items in your account that you haven't downloaded.

2) Open iTunes. From the Store menu at the top, chooseCheck for Available Downloads. You can also click this link to do the samething:

https://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZFinance.woa/wa/checkForPurchases

3) Enter your account name and password, then click theCheck button.

Sarah, the missing item should begin downloading andappear in your Purchased playlist. If you receive an error message whiledownloading, try again after turning off any firewall or web-acceleratorsoftware that you may have installed. If the download process is interruptedfor any reason, it should resume once you reopen iTunes.

This article provides information about resuminginterrupted downloads:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1725

If you don't see the item in your iTunes Library, pleaseinclude this information in your response to this email:

- The name of your Internet service provider (ISP)

- The type of Internet connection (such as dial-up, cablemodem, or DSL)

- Any troubleshooting steps you may have taken

- Any error messages you may have received

Sarah, unfortunately movies are available to for downloadthrough iCloud.

On behalf of iTunes Customer Support, Sarah, I would liketo extend our warmest thanks for the opportunity to help you today. Nothing is more important to us than ourcustomers, and to know that we have provided you with the excellent customerservice, that you deserve. Have a pleasant day!

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

Thank you for your note Larry, and NO nothing has beenresolved to my satisfaction. I havedisabled iMatch since it necessitated two reinstalls (immediately before Irequested a refund), and will not buy another of your products until my fundsfor this buggy software are returned. You can hide behind your terms all you want, but you sold an applicationto me that did NOT work (based on the forums, I am not the only one). You owe me a refund.

I have been more than patient with you folks, and scouredthe forums trying

to get this stupid thing to work. Too much work for something that should

have worked at inception.

Regards.

-----Original Message-----

From: iTunes Store [mailto:iTunesStoreSupport@apple.com]

Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2011 8:17 AM

To: rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Subject: RE: iTunes Store; Follow-up: 179951215

Hello Rick,

Larry here again from iTunes Store Support. I hope youare having a fantastic day. First and foremost, I would like to extend anapology for the delayed response to your email. iTunes Support endeavors tosend a reply within 48 hours; however, due to new product releases and featuresfor the iTunes Store we are experiencing higher volumes than normal. Weappreciate your patience and understanding.

Rick, I wanted to touch base and ensure everything hasbeen resolved to your satisfaction.

As a valued member of the iTunes Store family, I didn'twant to leave you without any type of resolution.

I want your experience to be as enjoyable as possible. Ifyour issue has been resolved and you will like to close this request, or ifyour issue is still existing, please reply to this email.

It has been my extreme pleasure assisting you. Continueto enjoy your iTunes Store experience.

Have an extraordinary day, Rick!

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

Apple sold me a product that does not work as intended,and will not give me a refund? I will befiling a complaint with the BBB, and I will never EVER buy another product fromApple.

-----Original Message-----

From: iTunes Store [mailto:iTunesStoreSupport@apple.com]

Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 7:10 AM

To: rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Subject: Re: iTunes Store; Follow-up: 179951215

Hello Rick,

This is Larry from iTunes Customer Support, and I will beassisting you today. I understand that iTunes Match does not work asadvertised, it repeatedly crashed your systems, and you would like a refund.

Rick, I would like to sincerely apologize for anyinconvenience that you may have experienced. I realize your concern regardingiTunes Match, functioning properly, and I am happy to assist.

Your request for a refund for "iTunes Match"was carefully considered; however, according to the iTunes Store Terms of Sale,all purchases made on the iTunes Store are final. This policy matches Apple'srefund policies and provides protection for copyrighted materials.

You can review the iTunes Store Terms of Sale for moreinformation:

http://www.apple.com/legal/itunes/us/sales.html

Rick, please let me know if you have any other questionsor concerns. I'll be more than happy to assist you with whatever you need.Thank you for the chance to improve your iTunes experience and have a wonderfulday.

Sincerely,

Larry

iTunes Store Customer Support

Please Note: I work Sunday - Thursday, 8-4:30PM EST

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you.You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would begreatly appreciated.

First Name : Rick

Last Name : Zimmerman

Email : rick.zimmerman@comcast.net

Lang_Country : en_US

Product : iTunes Player

Support Subject : iTunes Store

Sub Issue : iTunes Store account billing GCRM Case ID :269561761 See additional info below What device did you use to connect to thestore?

Windows computer (PC) Which operating system isinstalled? Windows 7 What version ofiTunes is installed on your computer? iTunes 10.5 Choose the iTunes Store or App Store for your country: United States Item title:

iTunes Match refund request Order number: MGN62810G5

Details:

Pleaser refund the cost for iTunes match. It simply does not work as advertised, andrepeatedly crashed my systems (after locking them up and other issues). You need to work a bit more on thisproduct. Love the idea, not the currentproduct.