Comps where you have to be a subscriber to enter

Monkey_Chinchilla

I've seen this but not sure if I'm allowed to post this as you have to be a Trust magazine subscriber and I guess a subscription would be over the limit.

https://www.bailliegifford.com/individual-investors/sponsorship/literary-festival-sponsorship-news-promotions/win-a-weekend-at-hay-festival/

I've seen comps on here where you have to be on an O2 contract or be a Sky subscriber but I've noticed things like My Times Plus comps aren't on.

What is the general consensus? Is it if it is something like a mobile or TV contract, which most people pay for anyway, it is okay to post but if it is something more specialist it shouldn't be posted?

Thanks

One-Eye

I've always interpreted the rules as it is OK to post comps if you have a "membership" of some sort which allows you to enter all the relevant comps - even if the "membership" has a cost. This covers things like O2 customers, railcard holders, weightwatchers members and even covers those comps that require driving licences, passports or are open only to homeowners or caravan owners etc.

It is not OK to post comps where a purchase over the limit is required for a single entry to a single comp.

I see no reason why comps can't be posted that are behind a paywall such as My Times Plus and some of the Candis comps - as long as the poster indicates this in the thread title.

Don't forget that to enter any comp on MSE you need a computer/tablet/phone and an internet connection - and these are only truly free if you use a work connection or a public library.

mjm3346

The way MSE seem to work is if you need to buy a product that costs £2.11 that would be over the limit even if you buy the product anyway and legally cannot be charged any extra just because there is a competition on it*.
On that basis if it costs more than the limit to subscribe they presumably shouldn't be posted - I suppose the thing to do is report them and see if they are deleted.



(* At the same time it's fine to spend several times the comp limit in the "freebies low spend required" section)

mjm3346

One-Eye wrote: »

I see no reason why comps can't be posted that are behind a paywall such as My Times Plus and some of the Candis comps - as long as the poster indicates this in the thread title.

I just remembered some of the Candis subscriber ones were posted and they were all removed so presumably it's not ok to post them

Monkey_Chinchilla

I've just had my Times+ comps removed so I guess it's not okay but I don't understand why O2 Priority comps and Railcard Holder ones are allowed but not these. Anyhoo, I'll refrain from posting such comps in future.

One-Eye

It's just another inconsistency in the MSE rules - or the way they are applied in practice.

Another MSE comping rule that is broken all the time is "Competitions must be open to all"

Strict application of this rule would mean all comps with an age limit should not be posted - and that's not just the 40+ comps, as about 95% of all comps have a minimum age of 18 (or 16 or 13) and most of the rest have a maximum age! There are also comps that require you to be a member where membership is free but not open to all, such as those that are for students (NUS members) only. All the geographically restricted comps also fail the "open to all" rule.

velocity_girl

Yes I've always wondered about this. I used to be an Elle magazine subscriber and they did some subscriber only comps with amazing prizes (holidays, designer goodies, etc) which presumably are much lower entry than their usual ones. I never posted them because it seemed to be against the rules, but yes, there are other companies whose 'existing customer only comps' are posted... I don't know. MSE clarification would be welcome!