Some guy named Frank called our receptionist out of the blue and wanted to confirm our mailing address. After confirming the mailing address, He said he needs to send us some paper work to one of our manager for the manager to review and if it is okay to send it to the address that was confirmed. Our receptionist of course said yes. We received a online marketing DVD a week later and an invoice for $650.98 for the DVD. Frank then calls us everyday saying that he had a recording of us ordering the product and we have to pay for it. A total scam.
Very similar experience as many other people who have posted here. I received a phone call from someone telling me that it was time to renew our listing in the Alberta Business Guide.
As I have been in my current position less than a year and this listing was regarding our Edmonton office, it seemed plausible that this was an existing relationship. The caller framed it as such. I deal with sales calls all day and yet it was the familiarity with which the caller spoke that really duped me.
I spoke with my colleagues after I got off the phone and no one had heard of this guide so it was definitely not a renewal of an existing service despite what I was told.
We received an invoice a few weeks later for $600. We will not be paying it. For anyone else in this position, please note that if you were tricked into a verbal commitment like I was, the good news is that you have not signed a contract.
I received a call at my office to speak with the manager / owner. Being that I am the owner I took the call from Universal Media. The con man on the phone began with a very fast talk about updating our listing with the "BC Business Listing". He asked if we were still at the same address and then proceeded to "update" what services we provided. After giving the information he politely told me if there was anything further I could contact their offices. I asked if this was just a free listing...that's when the penny dropped. He told me it was a renewal of a $590.00 per year listing. I told him I never authorized a listing to begin with. Their reasoning was that we had a "promtional listing" that was free for the first year and is now due for renewal. These guys are as bad as Cedar Pubications that tried to pull the same stunt on us three years ago.
You have taken our money. You have not paid one penny to our family in Royalities. My brother Warner Jansen and I my Mothers book Manager have asked for Zane to get back with us after our mother was buried in Sept. Zane is refusing all contact because I would not give him $80,000 to have your company write three screenplays.
We have received no quarterly statements with the PROOF of what as Sold with Your bookstore and other places. You wanted another $300.00 + for publishing a third book This is Jan 17, 2022 and not one quarterly statement You had my address and my three phone numbers. We have NOW gone to see your ratings and found that the same exact verbage and tricks have been played over and over with other authors.
I want to talk to the Page Turner OWNER and meet them in person.....This will not just go away. I am reporting this to everyone if I am not contacted this week....I know others just crawl away and lick their wounds. but that is not me. And changing your name or other tricks will not work. I know them all.
As a MEDIA Person myself......I will not tolerate you betraying my deceased mothers Trust in you or my trust when I GAVE YOU MY Money for something that was a lie
These guys are total scam artists, and have been operating for far too long.
Back in January of this year, I got a call asking for us to "confirm our mailing address" and that they would be sending us listing information in the mail and if that would be okay. They made it sound like we had been a part of this listing for a long time, and they were just needing our mailing address to send us info. At no point did I order anything, there's not even a PO number on the invoice they sent. They sent us a DVD (it's completely blank FYI) and an invoice of $650 for this apparent "listing". They played a clip of me "authorizing" the order to our accountant, so unfortunately she paid it.
Again this summer, they sent us another blank DVD and invoice to the tune of $1500 for a different Canadian Business Guide Listing. Again, nothing was ordered, they had only called to "confirm our mailing address". This time, when "Frank" called us looking for payment, I told him all the reasons why we would not be paying for this fraudulent scam. He was very difficult to deal with - but of course had an answer for everything. He was "shocked' the DVD was blank and offered to send another which I refused. I even told him there was no PO number nor that we were given any written cancellation rights as required by law for oral agreements. I even resorted to mentioning that "Universal Media" is all over the internet as a scam - he essentially called people cowards for writing reviews anonymously online so he couldn't address the issues.
I put up enough a fuss that he said he would note my concerns in our file, and it would be up to his boss to pursue this further. I told him I wanted to speak to this boss because I wanted this resolved here and now - which he refused to let me speak to him. I doubt I'll be hearing from this "boss".
I made a complaint with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Would be great to shut these scam artists down. Don't let these guys bully you in to paying a cent.
Like others that are reporting this company, they convince your staff that there is a prior listing or have done business in the past. In our case they made it sound like we were in some Ontario business directory. They send you out a disk and an invoice then try to collect funds.
They did not get my authority to list my business and our staff certainly does not have the authority do so so, they don't have our company listed in any directory. This is a complete scam. A scam of $700.58 including taxes.
Out of the blue he is demanding for payment, telling me that I did order an advertisement from his company, He Frank Lavoie told me that I never send a payment for that advertisement and I ask him If I can talk to the owner, his response is the owner is on holiday, which when I did make a research He Frank Lavoie is the owner.I did told him that I never see the advertisement that he claimed he did and published. I did told him to closed the account right now, but he insisted that I need to pay him .
Universal Media Inc. Reviews
Some guy named Frank called our receptionist out of the blue and wanted to confirm our mailing address. After confirming the mailing address, He said he needs to send us some paper work to one of our manager for the manager to review and if it is okay to send it to the address that was confirmed. Our receptionist of course said yes. We received a online marketing DVD a week later and an invoice for $650.98 for the DVD. Frank then calls us everyday saying that he had a recording of us ordering the product and we have to pay for it. A total scam.
Very similar experience as many other people who have posted here. I received a phone call from someone telling me that it was time to renew our listing in the Alberta Business Guide.
As I have been in my current position less than a year and this listing was regarding our Edmonton office, it seemed plausible that this was an existing relationship. The caller framed it as such. I deal with sales calls all day and yet it was the familiarity with which the caller spoke that really duped me.
I spoke with my colleagues after I got off the phone and no one had heard of this guide so it was definitely not a renewal of an existing service despite what I was told.
We received an invoice a few weeks later for $600. We will not be paying it. For anyone else in this position, please note that if you were tricked into a verbal commitment like I was, the good news is that you have not signed a contract.
I received a call at my office to speak with the manager / owner. Being that I am the owner I took the call from Universal Media. The con man on the phone began with a very fast talk about updating our listing with the "BC Business Listing". He asked if we were still at the same address and then proceeded to "update" what services we provided. After giving the information he politely told me if there was anything further I could contact their offices. I asked if this was just a free listing...that's when the penny dropped. He told me it was a renewal of a $590.00 per year listing. I told him I never authorized a listing to begin with. Their reasoning was that we had a "promtional listing" that was free for the first year and is now due for renewal. These guys are as bad as Cedar Pubications that tried to pull the same stunt on us three years ago.
You have taken our money. You have not paid one penny to our family in Royalities. My brother Warner Jansen and I my Mothers book Manager have asked for Zane to get back with us after our mother was buried in Sept. Zane is refusing all contact because I would not give him $80,000 to have your company write three screenplays.
We have received no quarterly statements with the PROOF of what as Sold with Your bookstore and other places. You wanted another $300.00 + for publishing a third book This is Jan 17, 2022 and not one quarterly statement You had my address and my three phone numbers. We have NOW gone to see your ratings and found that the same exact verbage and tricks have been played over and over with other authors.
I want to talk to the Page Turner OWNER and meet them in person.....This will not just go away. I am reporting this to everyone if I am not contacted this week....I know others just crawl away and lick their wounds. but that is not me. And changing your name or other tricks will not work. I know them all.
As a MEDIA Person myself......I will not tolerate you betraying my deceased mothers Trust in you or my trust when I GAVE YOU MY Money for something that was a lie
Total Scam
These guys are total scam artists, and have been operating for far too long.
Back in January of this year, I got a call asking for us to "confirm our mailing address" and that they would be sending us listing information in the mail and if that would be okay. They made it sound like we had been a part of this listing for a long time, and they were just needing our mailing address to send us info. At no point did I order anything, there's not even a PO number on the invoice they sent. They sent us a DVD (it's completely blank FYI) and an invoice of $650 for this apparent "listing". They played a clip of me "authorizing" the order to our accountant, so unfortunately she paid it.
Again this summer, they sent us another blank DVD and invoice to the tune of $1500 for a different Canadian Business Guide Listing. Again, nothing was ordered, they had only called to "confirm our mailing address". This time, when "Frank" called us looking for payment, I told him all the reasons why we would not be paying for this fraudulent scam. He was very difficult to deal with - but of course had an answer for everything. He was "shocked' the DVD was blank and offered to send another which I refused. I even told him there was no PO number nor that we were given any written cancellation rights as required by law for oral agreements. I even resorted to mentioning that "Universal Media" is all over the internet as a scam - he essentially called people cowards for writing reviews anonymously online so he couldn't address the issues.
I put up enough a fuss that he said he would note my concerns in our file, and it would be up to his boss to pursue this further. I told him I wanted to speak to this boss because I wanted this resolved here and now - which he refused to let me speak to him. I doubt I'll be hearing from this "boss".
I made a complaint with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Would be great to shut these scam artists down. Don't let these guys bully you in to paying a cent.
Same scam here
Same scam happened here in Quebec from a guy named Frank Lavoie.
Like others that are reporting this company, they convince your staff that there is a prior listing or have done business in the past. In our case they made it sound like we were in some Ontario business directory. They send you out a disk and an invoice then try to collect funds.
They did not get my authority to list my business and our staff certainly does not have the authority do so so, they don't have our company listed in any directory. This is a complete scam. A scam of $700.58 including taxes.
Out of the blue he is demanding for payment, telling me that I did order an advertisement from his company, He Frank Lavoie told me that I never send a payment for that advertisement and I ask him If I can talk to the owner, his response is the owner is on holiday, which when I did make a research He Frank Lavoie is the owner.I did told him that I never see the advertisement that he claimed he did and published. I did told him to closed the account right now, but he insisted that I need to pay him .