Complaints for Page Publishing, Inc. in Conneaut Lake, PA

Complaints	Type of response
0	Making a full refund, as the consumer requested
0	Making a partial refund
2	Agreed to make an adjustment
0	Refusing to make an adjustment
0	Refuse to adjust, relying on terms of agreement
1	Unanswered

Customer Complaint

1/24/2024

I was contacted by an agent via a phone call a Robert Deluise asking if I might have a book ready for Publishing. I do not know how he found me. I have several books ready to publish or nearly ready. One being "Nana's Wacky Farm". They had options for me to choose from. I ran the contract they offered by my daughter in law a family law attorney, She did not find any complaints and said to use Option A. We paid Page Publishing $5000 and the book was published but they did not tell me until after the fact was they would not pay my artist royalties for her art work. Recently they told me I had to pay her out of my Royalties. They at no time was said that prior to publishing. The other had to do with the press release Which reads, Publicity and Press Release Distribution: "Publisher's publicity team will create a custom press release that will be sent by a premier third-party newswire firm to a targeted priority list of media including LOCAL "Which by definition means; my community, county, in my state, where I reside" "REGIONAL" would be a bit broader such as Seattle area or Portland Oregon, Missoula Montana, etc for the Pacific Northwest Region and "NATIONAL" would reflect the entire USA, print, broadcast, and online sources." Instead my book press release via Page Publishing, was sent to a bunch of "scammers" who contacted and harassed me via email and phone calls asking me to pay large sums for interview spots. Resolution Sought I have things to attach. I want them to contact the local media in my local area of Spokane County, Washington where I reside & regionally Pacific Northwest. They have an excuse the contract did not mean Local and they would be spamming and I can contact media. I have attachments and letters etc. They refuse to listen. I am 74 on a fix income and limited people to contact to get sales on my book. They LIED. My phone is a landline not a cell phone.

Company Response

1/26/2024

Dear Ms. Donier, Firstly, thank you very much for taking the time to reach out to us. We hope, together, we can all come to a better understanding through a positive conversation about these lingering frustrations. It sounds like you are deeply unsatisfied with two main items: we are unable to directly pay your granddaughter a portion of your royalty payments, and our press release service only sends press releases to media outlets (local, regional, and national) that opt-in or choose to receive press releases. We completely empathize and can understand why you’re frustrated. Both requests seem very simple on the surface. We’ll do our best to clarify the challenges and limitations we face trying to fulfill your requests. We understand that you had initially planned for your granddaughter to handle the illustrations, which is not only great for the publication, but also a terrific way to include her work within your legacy. As much as we would like to issue your granddaughter a portion of the royalties, we are required to issue all the royalties, as detailed in the partnership agreement, to the person with whom the agreement is with. Unfortunately, we are unable to make payments, including royalties, to individuals or third parties who are not directly under contract with our company. This policy is in place to maintain transparency, accountability, and consistency in our operations. It’s for this reason that we suggested that we pay you the full royalties as we are required to do, and then you could issue an amount you see as appropriate to your granddaughter if you choose. I’m afraid we are unable to lawfully send out unsolicited press releases to businesses. We do send press releases to media outlets of varying sizes, including local, regional, and national sources. However, it's important to note that we are careful to comply with the CAN-SPAM Act, which prohibits sending unsolicited messages. Media outlets must opt-in or choose to receive our press releases to avoid any potential violations of these strict regulations. Each violation of the CAN-SPAM Act can result in penalties of up to $51,744. While many local, regional, and national media outlets choose to receive our press releases, it's possible that some of your neighborhood outlets may opt not to do so, which could explain why they have not received the release you mentioned. To address your request for reaching organizations within your neighboring area, we provided your press release on our letterhead, allowing you to distribute it to any organizations as you choose. We know this might not be ideal, but it is a creative way to allow you to get your press release in front of eyes in your area, while avoiding the potential violations we would face if we ignored the FCC regulations. We understand that our responses may not align with your expectations. If it were possible for us to fulfill your requests, we would do so willingly. However, we must exercise caution to avoid any potential breaches of our partnership agreements or violations of media regulations. These precautions are in place to protect both our authors and our company from potential issues and ensure a smooth working relationship. Ms. Donier, your satisfaction continues to be our utmost priority. We sincerely hope that this recent challenge hasn't cast a shadow over our relationship. We truly value you as an author, and your book is a valuable addition to our publication catalog. We look forward to maintaining a strong and positive author-publisher relationship and hope you will remain an integral part of our author family. If you have any further concerns or questions, please don't hesitate to reach out. We are here to support you every step of the way.

Customer Rebuttal

1/30/2024

I do have a rebuttal but you only allow 1200 characters and the rebuttal is more words and 1200 words is not going to address nor reflect the full issue and or resolutions to this matter. You do not have a way to attach the rebuttal either and things needed to fully address the issue. I have learned that Page Publishing is a "vanity" Publisher they are a scam and that they were honest they can do just fine press releases to Local media and have links to that for one. Things I did not know and their press release a gimmick sent to other scammers over 30 all offering to "promote my book Nana's Wacky Farm" for a 15 minute Zoom interview if I pay them anywhere from $800 to $4000 to do so. I am 74 and On a fixed low social security income. Washington AG said this is elder abuse. My income is literally a bit over $800 a month and unless the book sells well starting in my local area the chance of getting much if any profit is dismal. They did not clarify they did not pay authors illustrator and contract says LOCAL press release as well as regional and national I need to attach things and cannot.

Company Final Response

2/1/2024

Thank you again for allowing us the opportunity to better understand your frustrations. Your press release can indeed be sent directly to specific local media members if they have opted in to receive them. There's also a good chance it could be syndicated by the outlets that receive it, allowing the news to spread further. It's important to understand that press releases are meant to announce newsworthy events, such as the release of a new book. Press releases are not intended to serve as advertisements, and it’s an FCC violation to send them unsolicited because it would flood the media’s inboxes like the companies you mention are doing to your email. We do not send our author’s contact information out with our press releases. Is it possible that you may have unintentionally signed up for a mailing list online when seeking information about publishing? This could be how those companies received your info. Clicking the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of those emails should help stop those messages. We agree that the character limit is frustrating. Please reach out to Ms. McCray directly if you’d like to speak more about these concerns in more detail.

Complaints and Resolutions

Page Publishing, Inc. complaints