Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus.

1410 Posts and Counting

MoviePass in a Death Spiral? UPDATE!

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 6, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,544

Image: theverge.com

HERE IS WHAT I WROTE THIS MORNING.  THE COMMUNICATION FROM MOVIE PASS, BELOW, ARRIVED THIS AFTERNOON.  THEY PAINT A SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT PICTURE OF THEIR FUTURE.

We should have realized that it was too good to be true. MoviePass is almost passe’, due to a flawed business model.

The latest MoviePass arrangement is back to the $9.95 monthly rate and a limit of three movies per month. Nothing about premium rates for big movies.  But who would trust them?

We now know that MoviePass will change the deal on a dime and we have nothing to say about it. Moreover, many theaters have stopped accepting your MoviePass without notice. What kind of a contract is that?

Plus, the system doesn’t always work, forcing you to leave or pay anyway. You can’t complain about it to customer service, by phone or by email.  Surprise — customer service crashed long ago.  And when you decide to terminate the service, if you can, they continue to bill you.

Goodbye MoviePass.  We didn’t want to watch that many movies anyway.

CLT

AFTERNOON UPDATE:

Dear MoviePass Member,
 
On August 15, 2018, we will hit the one-year anniversary of MoviePass’ revolutionary price point of $9.95 a month. We’ve experienced tremendous growth, and we know that at times, the frequent changes to our service have been frustrating to you. But through it all, one thing is clear: we’ve gotten people excited about going to the movies again.
 
Over the last year, we have tried different things and we’ve discovered what our members love about our service — the low price point and the ability to go to more than 91 percent of theaters nationwide. We’ve also learned what people don’t like about the service — features including Peak Pricing and Ticket Verification.
 
So now, with almost a full year of learnings under our belt, we’re introducing a new pricing plan that retains the features you love the most and removes the ones you don’t. Most importantly, this new plan will ensure that we can run a sustainable business and continue providing you with an amazing deal to go see movies in theaters.
 
Here are the details:

  • Under our new plan, MoviePass members will be able to see up to threestandard movies a month for $9.95, and be given up to a $5.00 discount to any additional movie tickets purchased. Today, 85 percent of MoviePass members go to three movies or less per month, so these changes cater to the majority of our movie-going community.
     
  • The new plan will include many major studio first-run films, however there will be some exceptions (note that theaters with e-ticketing will include all movies and showtimes with no restrictions).
     
  • We will be suspending Peak Pricing and Ticket Verification requirements for all members in the new plan described above.
     
  • Over the coming days, MoviePass members with a monthly subscription renewing on or after August 15th will be given the option in the MoviePass app to transition to the new plan. Quarterly and annual subscribers will not be impacted until their renewal date.

The truth is, disruption and innovation require staying flexible and having an open mind. We genuinely strive to offer you a service that is a great deal, and we believe that the new plan we’re introducing will be attractive to the majority of our members.
 
It’s been an exciting journey so far, and MoviePass is here to stay. Your endless support, understanding and enthusiasm are greatly appreciated.
 
Thank you,
Mitch Lowe

 

Category: Contract Law, News Commentary
Tags:

The Ultimate Contract of Adhesion

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 6, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,543

This is too good to take the chance you won’t click the link.  Plus, after reading this, you may not be in the mood to click any links for a while.  This masterpiece appeared in a blog called the Babylon Bee.

http://BOSTON, MA—Local man Justin Fuller immediately fell dead after clicking “I have read and accept these terms and conditions” when installing a new piece of software Friday morning. The Lord and Sovereign Judge, from which nothing is hidden, could tell Fuller had not even glanced at the twelve pages of legalese, and thus his checking of the box was a lie against which God took immediate vengeance. “This is very scary,” said software analysis Terrell Bennett. “It makes me wonder if other people have not been reading the end-user license agreement. It’s an important contract between the licensor and the purchaser, and it could be chaos if people didn’t understand all the ramifications of what they were agreeing to. If you click you accept those terms and conditions without having read them, you’re lying to the software vendor, to your Macbook Pro, and to the Creator of us all who is always watching.” CompuGlobal, the maker of the software Fuller was installing, has informed Fuller’s wife she will get a full refund for the computer program since the EULA was not properly agreed to. “Hopefully everyone in the future will take the time to read the terms and conditions,” said David Zimmerman, the lawyer who wrote the EULA, shortly before falling over dead.       

Category: Contract Law, Humor and Satire
Tags: > >

One Hundred Years Ago: The Tide Turned.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 6, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,542

 

On August 6, 1918 in the Second Battle of the Marne, the German offensive failed and the French counteroffensive began.  Reinforced by eight fresh American Divisions, Marshall Foch commanded the first in a series of Allied offenses that would bring the Great War to an end.

 

Category: One Hundred Years Ago
Tags: > > > >

The Explanation to this Mystery Lies Beneath the Surface.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 5, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,541

Image: Atlas Obscura
This footbridge in Dunbar Scotland can only be used during low tide.

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

What’s Your Question?

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 5, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,540

Don’t let the black mole bite you.

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Is Archer Going to Be the New Cutch?

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 3, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,539

He turned down Andrew’s number, at least for now, but he seems to be well on his way to winning the hearts of Pittsburgh.

He showed up in town wearing an Antonio Brown football shirt and did some very smooth interviews for the local media in which he convincingly expressed optimism about being here. He even revived “Gold and Yellow” as his walk on song. People in this town have suddenly turned optimistic about the Pirates. Amazing!

This time last week nobody would have predicted any of this.

Image: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Category: Amazing!, Pittsburgh
Tags: >

Grading Your Day on Pass/Fail

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 3, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,538

Here’s a simple idea I just now read in one of my favorite blogs, Early to Rise, which I often check at about 6 AM.

Image:grizzlybearblues.com

Every evening, give yourself a pass-fail grade on your top three tasks of the day.  Of course, you select the list on the night before or early in the morning.

Passing even one is a decent day.  Passing two is a good day.  And passing three is a stellar day.

And of course, you may be entitled to extra credit for success with something that wasn’t on the list, but should have been.

Many tasks are too big to complete in a single day. It is not practical to finish some (even though you thought you could) because there are other things to do.  Just making progress can be a pass. Most jobs can be broken into parts, with one completed that day for a pass.

Of course, this report card is just for you. Don’t cheat. Tomorrow is another day.

CLT

Category: Personal Productivity

Pittsburgh High on List of Home Improvement Lending.

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 2, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,537

Source: Lending Tree Study as reported in the M Report.

 

Category: Pittsburgh, Real Estate

Study Says Pittsburgh Flippers Score Highest ROI in Nation

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| August 1, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,536

DS News posted about a study of home flipping in the United States performed by Wallet Hub. While Pittsburgh is not the most active city in this category, it is reported to yield investors the highest return on their investment.

Image: kurtrealestate.com

The Wallet Hub report doesn’t analyze the numbers, but non-scientific observation indicates that the rehabbing activity is concentrated in rapidly emerging neighborhoods such as South Side and Lawrenceville or higher-end established communities such as Shadyside, Squirrel Hill and the suburbs.  If you live in such a place, you may be receiving post cards from people offering to buy your house for cash.

Flippers are often maligned by the public as predatory.  Some undoubtedly are, but they also create numerous benefits to the community.  They are extending the life of existing housing.  Many of the properties they rehab would eventually be torn down.  They put structurally sound older houses back on the market with new kitchens and bathrooms of the kind that today’s buyers want.  They add amenities like air conditioning that older Pittsburgh houses typically don’t have.

Instead of complaining, we should be happy that somebody is revitalizing older communities at their own risk and without subsidies.

Here’s the DS News post with a link to the Wallet Hub report.

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh
Tags: >

Blog Updates

Posted by Cliff Tuttle| July 31, 2018 | © 2025

No. 1,535

Although the look has not changed much lately, this blog has been undergoing updates that should make it load faster and be less susceptible to machinations by those gremlins who have nothing better to do than cause mayhem.  The contact form has been updated.  It is a private communication, but if you want to make a comment, use the new green button and I’ll post it after the usual monitoring.

CLT

 

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk
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Welcome

CLIFF TUTTLE has been a Pennsylvania lawyer for over 45 years and (inter alia) is a real estate litigator and legal writer. The posts in this blog are intended to provide general information about legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus. However, this information does not constitute legal advice and there is no lawyer-client relationship created when you read this blog. You are encouraged to leave comments but be aware that posted comments can be read by others. If you wish to contact me in privacy, please use the Contact Form located immediately below this message. I will reply promptly and in strict confidence.

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