MASSILLON, Ohio–(BUSINESS WIRE)–

The following is an opinion editorial provided by David E. Howe, president, SubscriberWise:

“I’ve contacted Delta corporate offices and filed a complaint with the FAA after I obtained a ticket on Delta.com and the published price instantly increased following my agreement to purchase,” said David Howe, president of SubscriberWise.

“This is not the first experience I’ve had with Delta’s corporate-owned website increasing a published a fare following an otherwise successful booking,” continued Howe. “I was logged onto https://www.delta.com/ with my Delta SkyMiles account. I located a flight and selected the fare. Immediately after I completed the booking session and entered the three digit credit card information for payment, the system replied with a message that the fare increased and additional payment was now required.

“I’m outraged by what should be recognized as nothing more than a deceptive pricing scheme. There was no time-out from the website and the booking process was timely. It’s time now for the federal government to investigate this practice and enforce a policy against it. Frankly I’d appreciate if Delta’s senior executives would acknowledge their system failure and develop a solution so that when a customer selects a fare, the published price cannot increase when a payment is processed promptly for that fare.

“Although I understand the economics of supply and demand well, there’s simply no defense Delta can offer to justify an on-the-fly price increase during the time a customer chooses their itinerary, promptly completes payment, and then selects ‘agree to purchase’,” Howe emphasized. “Delta’s programmers need to modify their website so no other consumer is a victim of this scheme.

“As the majority shareholder of SubscriberWise, an issuing CRA (consumer reporting agency) for the communications industry, I understand and know well about federal regulations; there are a myriad federal regulations placed on consumer reporting agencies like the one I work for. And I certainly don’t agree with every regulation and government bureaucracy. However, even as a business owner, I understand and appreciate why U.S. consumers – including myself – must have protections from organizations that choose to engage in unethical, immoral, harmful, and sometimes even illegal practices.

“I’ve provided the FAA with documentation to substantiate exactly what happened. I encourage the FAA to investigate the matter carefully and I look forward to their (and Delta’s) response. For the record, I have no other complaints with Delta Airlines,” Howe concluded.

About SubscriberWise
SubscriberWise® launched as the first issuing consumer reporting agency exclusively for the cable industry in 2006. In 2009, SubscriberWise and TransUnion announced a joint marketing agreement for the benefit of America’s independent cable operators. Today SubscriberWise is a risk management preferred-solutions provider for the National Cable Television Cooperative. SubscriberWise technology has prevented thousands of child identity thefts and uncovered the misuse of personally identifiable information for operators everywhere. SubscriberWise contributions to the telecom industry are in excess of twenty-five million dollars annually.

SubscriberWise is a U.S.A. federally registered trademark.

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