I AM NOT A HAPPY CUSTOMER!

Agate

New Member
On Nov 5, I purchased and attempted to download the Cathe-Stretch-Max-Routine-1. All three attempts failed, when each time the download came to a grinding halt about a third of the way through the file.

As I explained to "Curt" on the Cathe helpdesk:

"I have high speed DSL (10M/768K), with no limits on file size and plenty of space on my hard drive (>60G). My computer is a MacBook and I'm using Safari. This is the first time I've downloaded a Cathe video, but I download videos and audiobooks all the time. "

Curt's response, on November 17, was:

"we have been looking into the problem you are experiencing with the internet provider that hosts the video download site, and have yet to receive a suitable response from them on what is causing this issue. Although 99% of our downloads have been working just fine, there seems to be a problem from an isolated group where the downloads come to a stop like your's did. It doesn't seem to be a problem on our end, and doesn't mean it is on your end either, but problem lies within the interaction between the two.

At this moment I simply don't have an answer for where that problem is occurring. If you can be a bit more patient with us, I will make sure that you do get your download, and of course we will re-set your download count. I hope to hear back from the server company within the next day. I can either reset your count now and you can give the download another try, or I can wait to reset it until I receive a reply from the server company and you can attempt the download again at that point.

I understand your frustration with the situation, and appreciate your patience. I will contact you soon when I hear back from our server provider."

So.... I patiently waited!

After not hearing anything, I pinged Curt on Nov 30 (two days ago) to check if he had heard from the server company, but have not received any reply.

I'm out of patience, Cathe Nation, especially when you don't even bother to respond to my simple request for an UPDATE!

I AM NOT A HAPPY CUSTOMER!
 
It's ok

First, don't get upset and angry at Curt. I think he gave a good response. As far as not responding for two days or so, be patient. Something could have come up. He may have been pulled to work on something else, he may be out sick, who knows. He's giving you your count back and that's the least he can do until he tries to determine why your particular computer won't download something.

I try not to get angry at things because a lot of times I've had to apologize for acting like an as$ when it wasn't what it seemed.
 
I think she contacted Curt on Nov 17 and got a reply that he would get back to her in a few days. When she had received no further info she contacted Curt again on Nov 30 and still has not heard. So it was more like 2 weeks with no further explanation. I can understand your frustration. Simply a reply that he is working on the problem helps.
 
That may be so, but it's only been 2 weeks AND the holiday was in there. I was sick for a week over the holidays. Just saying you never know what's going on at the other end. It's better to be nice and patient and just be an apologetic pest :D, than to be angry.

I'm sorry some are having problems with the downloads. I have had no issues so far and I have the whole library to download (have presently downloaded 30 of them). Need an external drive to get all of them done, but I'm doing it as I work on the 6 1/2 month STS rotation . . . ah, but I digress!

Anyway, give him a chance. Get back in touch with him and realize there are a lot more places out there that have really LOUSY customer service!

I think she contacted Curt on Nov 17 and got a reply that he would get back to her in a few days. When she had received no further info she contacted Curt again on Nov 30 and still has not heard. So it was more like 2 weeks with no further explanation. I can understand your frustration. Simply a reply that he is working on the problem helps.
 
On Nov 5, I purchased and attempted to download the Cathe-Stretch-Max-Routine-1. All three attempts failed, when each time the download came to a grinding halt about a third of the way through the file.

As I explained to "Curt" on the Cathe helpdesk:

"I have high speed DSL (10M/768K), with no limits on file size and plenty of space on my hard drive (>60G). My computer is a MacBook and I'm using Safari. This is the first time I've downloaded a Cathe video, but I download videos and audiobooks all the time. "

Curt's response, on November 17, was:

"we have been looking into the problem you are experiencing with the internet provider that hosts the video download site, and have yet to receive a suitable response from them on what is causing this issue. Although 99% of our downloads have been working just fine, there seems to be a problem from an isolated group where the downloads come to a stop like your's did. It doesn't seem to be a problem on our end, and doesn't mean it is on your end either, but problem lies within the interaction between the two.

At this moment I simply don't have an answer for where that problem is occurring. If you can be a bit more patient with us, I will make sure that you do get your download, and of course we will re-set your download count. I hope to hear back from the server company within the next day. I can either reset your count now and you can give the download another try, or I can wait to reset it until I receive a reply from the server company and you can attempt the download again at that point.

I understand your frustration with the situation, and appreciate your patience. I will contact you soon when I hear back from our server provider."

So.... I patiently waited!

After not hearing anything, I pinged Curt on Nov 30 (two days ago) to check if he had heard from the server company, but have not received any reply.

I'm out of patience, Cathe Nation, especially when you don't even bother to respond to my simple request for an UPDATE!

I AM NOT A HAPPY CUSTOMER!


Curt has actually responded to you several times trying to help you. We just don't have an answer for you of why you were having a problem... as we've tested and downloaded the file you're having an issue with and it works fine for us. This file has also been downloaded by many other people without any issues.

Our records also show that Curt got back to your original request from Nov 15th on Nov 17th. On the same day,that Curt got back to you (his response is shown above).... you contested your charge with PayPal without giving us any time to help you further. Since you contested your PayPal charge without giving us time to troubleshoot this further, we considered that you just wanted a refund and closed your ticket.
 
Dear Cathe Nation,

Thank you for your refund, conveniently issued the day after I posted on your forum.

But I want to make things clear:

My original request was Nov 6, NOT Nov 15. Curt responded to me on Nov 9, and I followed his instructions, but I still could not download my purchase. I responded Nov 10, and awaited his response. I did not hear anything, so I repeated my request on Nov 15.

When that didn’t receive any reply, I tried submitting a new ticket on Nov 17. I also initiated a PayPal Dispute on that day.

Let’s be clear: initiating a PayPal dispute does not automatically stop or return payment. It simply initiates a forum in which customer and vendor can communicate to resolve the problem. Cathe Nation did not respond to my request for follow-up in this forum at any time.

However, Curt did respond to my new ticket on Nov 17, saying he’d been out due to surgery and not been able to respond. My sympathies, Curt, but when I go out on leave, I’m required to make sure someone else in my company is there to take care of my duties.

Anyways, I responded to Curt on Nov 18, saying I would wait until he heard back from his server company before I would re-attempt a download, and that I would not follow-up with the PayPal dispute, thus giving Cathe Nation the time needed to troubleshoot the problem.

Yes, Thanksgiving came and went, and so I waited 6 business days for a response. I politely asked for a response Nov 30, and got nothing. It took an angry post to the website to receive any response, which was in the form of a refund.

Thanks, but you know, I really like Cathe’s workouts. I have several of her DVDs. I would love to be able to play my favorite workouts on my ipod, but this experience has really left me bitter. I understand that digital downloads is a new venture for Cathe Nation, and I would have gladly worked with you to try to make your service better, in the interests of being a repeat customer. Sadly, that didn’t happen.
 
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Oh, and if you are keeping score, I have submitted 6 requests over the last month regarding this matter.

The "several" responses I have received from Curt have been ... 2.
 
And could you please reconcile your response:

"we've tested and downloaded the file you're having an issue with and it works fine for us. This file has also been downloaded by many other people without any issues."


with THIS:


"Although 99% of our downloads have been working just fine, there seems to be a problem from an isolated group where the downloads come to a stop like your's did. It doesn't seem to be a problem on our end, and doesn't mean it is on your end either, but problem lies within the interaction between the two."
 
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"we've tested and downloaded the file you're having an issue with and it works fine for us" = "It doesn't seem to be a problem on our end, and doesn't mean it is on your end either, but problem lies within the interaction between the two."

"This file has also been downloaded by many other people without any issues." = "Although 99% of our downloads have been working just fine, there seems to be a problem from an isolated group where the downloads come to a stop like your's did."
 
Just a thought...I was using Safari then switched to Firefox for a time but some downloads just would not complete when using these browsers so I am now back with Internet Explorer. Since the change, I have had no problems.
 
Maybe I'm missing something, but you seem to be very angry about a video? There are more important things in life than to be so upset over a video. Try and get over it!
 
I think the point is the problem with the customer service department regarding this issue. If I make a purchase, be it large or small, I expect to be treated with the respect due to a any paying customer. I also expect my problems to be treated with the same expediency and professionalism due me as a consumer.

Having said that I would take my refund and shop elsewhere..

JMO
 
I can understand being upset with customer service. I have been upset with customer service many different places (hello, Beach Body??!!). However, I didn't go onto the companies forum and post a tirade of all the comings and goings and happenings. The OP seems very angry, which I can understand. I don't know that the "he said/she said" helps though.

Carrie
 
I am also an unhappy customer. I think there is nothing wrong with sharing a bad experience so that other people can make an informed decision as to whether or not they want to risk purchasing something that may not work.

I have been unable to download my purchase, and due to the slow response time, it's been over 2 weeks and I still have no resolution. I have been unable to speak with an actual human being and am very frustrated at this point since they won't refund my money or fix the problem. I download all sorts of files and I've never had this problem. The problem is on their end and they know it. They should not sell nor offer downloads until they can support them.
 
We are currently not aware of any problems with any of our downloadable files. I understand your frustration with not being able to download a file, but the problem more than likely is not with the file. We have had thousands of files downloaded without any problems whatsoever. Yes, there are issues with some people, but this is true with any download site on the web as there are thousands of different computer, browser and operating systems that customers use. I'm not familiar with your case, but I would suggest trying either a different web browser or a different computer to download. I understand you have downloaded other files, but you probably have not downloaded an m4v file as this is not a format that movies use. Two weeks may seem like a long time, but the answers to a problem like yours are not simple to solve and there may be nothing on our end we can do. Again, I'm not familiar with your case, but I would suggest trying a different browser and/or a different computer to see what happens and continuing to email customer support.
 
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I am also an unhappy customer. I think there is nothing wrong with sharing a bad experience so that other people can make an informed decision as to whether or not they want to risk purchasing something that may not work.

I have been unable to download my purchase, and due to the slow response time, it's been over 2 weeks and I still have no resolution. I have been unable to speak with an actual human being and am very frustrated at this point since they won't refund my money or fix the problem. I download all sorts of files and I've never had this problem. The problem is on their end and they know it. They should not sell nor offer downloads until they can support them.

Are you saving the file or opening it? What kind of operating system are you using? If you open rather than save, there is a chance the file isn't playing.

Mv4 files need iTunes or Quicktime or Zune unless you have Windows 7, which has the CODEC to support the file format. If you're on a MAC with the right system requirements and versions of iTUnes and QT, you should be able to open it.

SNM, perhaps adding a test download so customers can check their system before buying might help. That way they can troubleshoot problems ahead of time. Also, have you considered offering other file formats? That might help, too.
 
"Healthy Recipe" For Successful Downloading (A Success Story?)

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Disclaimer: Geeky husband post, so don't blame JulesMT...
=====================================


Short version: Dump SSL on the download links and things will be better :)

Long version:

My wife also experienced continual download stalls/timeouts gathering a bunch of 800MB - 1GB video files she purchased. This occurred on several different machines we have at home -- a couple Macs (with Firefox, Safari, and Chrome) and an older XP machine with IE7.

I took a look for her and noticed that all these downloads are handled by SSL based HTTP requests to files that e-junkie stores on Amazon's S3 cloud. While there is nothing wrong with S3 (I actually use it for massive file distribution also), I think the SSL encryption is tripping things up for some people. In my experience, having a persistent SSL connection up, with a gigabyte of encryption/decryption, can have some wacky effects.

As a simple test, I tried downloading one of the 800MB files she purchased with the SSL link provided. Firefox stalled 11 times (requiring a pause/resume) before the download was complete. By simply performing a request for the same file *without* SSL encryption it downloaded entirely in one shot without intervention. After that I loaded up 10 files (in iGetter) using standard http (non ssl) URLs and all completed without any auto resume calls.

I doubt there is any real need for SSL encryption on the actual video downloads (and they are available via non-SSL calls already) -- so personally I'd just tell e-junkie to drop the SSL. I think that would clear things up for people having trouble.

For anyone else having trouble right now, you can try the following:

- Start the download in Firefox
- Cancel it with the X in the downloads window
- Right click on the canceled download and choose "Copy Download Link"
- Paste URL back into the browser and replace "https" at the beginning with "http" and give it a shot

Using download assistant apps, like iGetter, is sort of a pain as the download page uses Javascript to post the download requests rather then direct links. :( So if you use one, you'll have to do something similar to what's posted above to get at the real file URLs. At that point you might as well change the URLs to http also as it will be faster and less prone to problems.

Good luck... :)
 
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i am not here to add anything, i just get a kick out of reading all this computer mumbo-jumbo. :) i am so computer illiterate, you would laugh. my son is a programmer, and talking to him at times is like listening to someone in a foreign language. i am not in any way downplaying anyone's problems on here, i just have no idea what most of ya'll are talking about. :)
 

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