FREE iPOD, FREE NINTENDO DS, FREE--wait--WHAT?

OK, in a nutshell? I'm curious to prove once and for all if those "free iPod/gaming system/flat screen/etc" offers are for real. I'm a total gadget freak, so I'm understandably curious. If you want to help, head to The Conga Line at ThePete.Com to get started. If you don't know what all of this is about, please read on below. Don't be stupid--go into this educated so you don't get snookered like I almost did.

Some Background:

This might just be one of the biggest culture jams there is. I'm sure you've seen the banner ads around the 'net telling you to "shoot the bee" or "whack the mole" or "smash the Republican" and win a free iPod (OK I made that last one up). Well, I did some research and surprisingly enough, the deal is actually legit--almost. First off, people do claim to be getting their free iPods. The Gratis Network, the people who are running this bizarre system, have even taken to giving away free flatscreens, free handbags, and now even free desktop PCs, Mini iMacs and game systems, like my personal lust-object, the Nintendo DS.

There's Always a Catch:

What's the catch? Good question. The catch is that you have to complete a single "offer" from one of the companies they have a partnership with. This can be signing up for a service for a month, trying out a product, getting a credit card or other such simple tasks. Hang on--the catch isn't over yet! Once you complete one of these offers, you then need to get X number of more people to complete an offer, as well. These are called "referrals."

The X number depends on the price of the item you're going for. In the case of a flatscreen you need to get 8 people to complete offers, for the Nintendo DS you need just 4 people. The iPod needs 5 referrals.

The catch really isn't over there, either. There seem to be at least a few things to watch out for. Mainly, some of the offers seem to have catches, too. For instance, I signed up for the Blockbuster Online trial. Back when I did it, you could try it free for two weeks and then it was $20 a month after that. As long as I completed the two week offer, I would get credit for a free iPod (I'd still have to get 5 more people to complete an offer, of course). So, I waited until 11pm the last day of my two weeks and cancelled my trial. This way, I'd avoid being charged that $20 for the first month. Well, I never got credit for completing the offer.

I emailed the Gratis Network people and they said that I could get credit if I showed them the cancelation email I got. Of course, I didn't get one, so... I wasn't sure how to proceed. I'm still not.

Free Nintendo DS? Uh....

Ever the hopeful gadget-freak, I decided to give the system a try again, this time I signed up for a free gaming system--a Nintendo DS. I figured I'd blog about it and see if anyone else was curious to give this a try with me. I've already completed an offer for a day-long trial on this auction website and only paid a dollar to do it. Here's where another problem arose, however. The auction site the offer was with usually charges $40 a month for access to their auctions (ye--$40! --Don't ask me!) and the way their offer was worded made me think I had a month to use the day trial. It read:

Today's charge is: $1.00 for a 1 day trial period.
Membership Renews Automatically at $39.95 every 1 month Until Cancelled.

Of course, the next day I was charged $40.

Luckily, I took screen caps of every page as I went so I had proof that any misunderstanding was their fault. (I recommend that everyone do this, just in case.)

I immediately emailed the auction site and explained that I was confused about the wording and thought I had a month to decide if I wanted to pay the full price. I was even honest about only trying their service because they had the offer through Gratis Network. Well, I am very happy to report that they actually refunded my money AND I got credit for the free Nintendo DS.

Want to Join the Conga Line?

So, here's where I stand now. I've installed a "Conga Line" management system here at the site. What it does is automate the process of getting refferals for those of us who want to take advantage of these Gratis Network offers. You go to the Conga Line page and click on the top referral link in the list (assuming there is one for a free device you want--if not, add one yourself). Clicking that link brings you to the Gratis Network page for the device the referral is for.

Right now, I have my own referral there for a free gaming system. Once you sign up at the Gratis Network free gaming system page (you don't have to choose the Nintendo DS) and complete an offer, click on the "refer friends" link. On the next page you see will be a referral link for you. Highlight it and copy it. Head back to the Conga Line at ThePete.Com and click on "add a link." Then you'll be prompted to enter your screen name, password and referral link. Click submit and then just wait. Other people will (in theory) visit my site, or find this post through a search engine, click through to the Conga Line and click on your referral link and do the same thing you did.

You'll need to check the Gratis Network's free gaming system page for your status. It will tell you when the four people have completed their offers. When that happens, you'll place your order for your (reasonably) free gaming system with them. Once you do that, return to the Conga Line again and click "edit link." Then you'll be able to update the system and your referral will move off the "needs referrals" list and onto the "Pending users" list. When you get your system (which does happen, so I'm told) come back again and update the system one last time to let us know your game system showed up.

You can check out more about the Gratis Network at their blog, strangely enough.

Watch Your Back!

One thing I should be clear about is this: by signing up for these offers, ThePete.Com bares no responsibility if you get charged $60 by Video Professor when you thought you'd only get charged $6. It's your job to read the fine print and watch your own back. I am completely willing to give you moral support and give you suggestions on how to deal with these companies, but your actions are ultimately your responsibility.

Sorry, I don't mean to sound preachy, but I am doing anything BUT endorsing the Gratis Network or any of the companies they have partnerships with. I'm simply in this to get free gadgets--does that make me a socialist or a conservative--it's so hard to tell these days!

Watch this space for more on this as events warrant.