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I have been in an email war of words with RP customer service regarding the cost of an annual subscription to its Ultimate Members Club.
In February 2018 the price was £260.
A week or so ago I renewed at £299.
Subsequently I have been informed that in February 2020 it will set me back £349!
Put another way, it means that by this time next year the price per month will have risen from £21.67 to £29.08. That is an increase of £7.41 per month and one of over 33%. This percentage is more than 18 times higher than the current rate of inflation.
When asked to justify the hike the RP pointed to the cost of providing both replays of every race and PDF versions of its small stable of papers to download. It added something about the costs of sustaining and developing its website.
I replied by stating that as I watch almost every race live and have a good memory I do not need or indeed have time to watch replays when studying a horse’s form. And I also said that if I wished to read the paper I would go out and buy it instead of subscribing online.
Unfortunately, retaining full membership is vital to me, however, I feel taken advantage of and like I am subsidising the print version.
Thoughts on the price rise anyone?
I suppose the most obvious question GM is; why are you paying for Ultimate when you dont watch videos or read the paper online? Outside of tipping, which I’d imagine probably wouldn’t be your bag either, isn’t everything else available for half the price on Essential?
A lot of news, articles and opinion plus some stats are not available on Essential, Cav. Until just over a year ago I subscribed to Essential Monthly and at that time, frustrated at clicking on an interesting headline to no avail, I felt it was worth upgrading, especially with the saving from also switching to Annual. In fairness, even if I don’t want them, extra features have been added, however, I don’t think any reason can justify the steepness of the price rise. It’s outrageous :)
I had a similar experience myself GM. Was happy enough with Essential, then went Ultimate to have access to a few of the columnists. I barely watch videos and although its nice to get the Weekender and RFO, I could certainly do without them too.
Perfect package for me would be Essential, plus online articles, for a price somewhere between Essential and Ultimate. I’ve paid up till November, but can see myself going back to Essential after that, 349 sterling is hefty.
That’s a good idea, Cav, funnily enough I was thinking the same thing myself. Perhaps the RP could call it Essential Plus. The price gap between the two current packages is yawning.
I will stump up the £349 next Feb but it will be interesting to watch out for any indication, such as offering a third package, that RP is losing lots of Ultimate members. It’s the principle of that kind of price rise over two years that makes my blood boil!
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