Do you guys remember this lame post I made back in 2013?
I gave a brief overview of a great app that allowed you to earn points and redeem rewards just by watching TV and listening to music. (The music feature was added after the 2013 post.) It was amazing! I spent a lot of time “checking in” to songs and shows, and watching all the extra ads it would let me in order to gain those important extra points. I’d redeemed several gift cards, a Viggle T-shirt (because I was more than happy to spread the word about this amazing opportunity), and had plans for possibly redeeming the biggest prize of a cruise for two (which cost several million points)!
I’m normally not one who likes to largely announce to the world how horrible something is, but this situation it too awful. It was slightly over nine months ago that Viggle was sold to Perk. I’ve used the Perk Browser in the past and it… wasn’t terrible.
The following is the review I finally left for the app in the App Store. Some is repeat of what I already said in this post, but I give the details of the horrible result of the buy-out.
Rating: ★✰✰✰✰
I used to love Viggle. Not only did I use it all the time, but I proudly wore the merch I bought with my Viggle points.
Now, the app has to be constantly open the entire time you’re watching the program you checked into. Take a phone call during ads? Miss out on points. Do ANYTHING with your phone during the show? Miss out on points.
Also, apparently points expire now. It’s been a couple months since I last opened the app, and I opened it today only to discover I have only 6 points. I had at LEAST 6,000.
Nope. Don’t like that.I’m keeping the app for as long as it takes to exchange my Viggle points for Perk points and redeem them. Only 60,000 Viggle points are allowed to be exchanged per month, which translates into 3,000 Perk points. I still have over 200,000 Viggle points, so it’ll take a while, but I’ll be so glad to be done with this Perk takeover nightmare.
I would be more understanding if Viggle was sold because it was losing money, but it wasn’t. I was just sold. (News articles linked at bottom.)
I’m fully convinced that all of the 5-star ratings it currently has are either from people who never knew Viggle when it was good, AND/or people desperately trying to get points took advantage of Viggle’s offer of bonus points for giving such a rating. Nope. Bribery is not my thing, either. I’d rather give or read an honest review than a fake 5-star just for points.
I will give Perk a bit of a break in my rant with the best change they have made to Viggle. They’ve finally added the ability to check in with shows and movies you’re streaming. Don’t have regular TV or cable? That’s not a problem anymore. Watching on Netflix, Hulu, etc., will also get you points.
All in all, I don’t think Perk is an evil, selfish company, but they really should have thought more about what kept Viggle users coming back in the first place. Instead, they changed everything, making it harder to earn points, and making rewards 5x as expensive to redeem. Just remember: the most important thing in any business is the consumer. If the consumer doesn’t like what you’re selling (or how much you’re selling it for), you lose money.
Articles about the sale:
Fandomitis 