Jakks Pacific

[Paranoid]

Guys...

 

Read from the bottom up. Basically, Jakks will not provide parts outside of warranty. If their units fail, you're on your own. I already have a carbon dot cap to replace the one in the stick that should work, but I wanted to replace it with the same part, if possible. After all the recent talk about filling up landfills with cheap disposable plastics that are made from pertroluem, I think Jakk's attitude should be offensive to anyone. I've sent the Jakks agent a note with a link to this thread, and I've left her e-mail address in the body of the text, so you can feel free to contact her and let her know your opinion on the matter... which I would encourage you to do...

 

There is no reason that this stick should end up garbage, leeching toxic chemicals from the PCB into our ground. Jakks is an irresponsible company. Remember that the next time you're tempted to buy one of their TV game systems.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

I'm going to go out of my way to publicize in every forum that I can, the fact that Jakks pacific would rather have you throw away a $19 device than offer a $.5 part for $2 plus shipping and handling.

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From: Michelle Venegas / JAKKS Pacific, Inc. [mailto:michellev@jakks.net]

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 2:25 PM

To:

Subject: RE: Problem

 

 

Ok, the warranty has expired for this game and we do not provide any replacements or repairs. You will have to buy a new game.

 

 

 

JAKKS PACIFIC, Inc.

 

Michelle Venegas

 

Consumer Relations Representative

 

21749 Baker Parkway

 

Industry, CA 91789

 

(877)875-2557 Fax: (909) 594-3200

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

From:

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 1:00 PM

To: Michelle Venegas / JAKKS Pacific, Inc.;

Subject: RE: Problem

 

 

 

Almost certainly.

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

 

From: Michelle Venegas / JAKKS Pacific, Inc.

 

[mailto:michellev@jakks.net]

 

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 12:38 PM

 

To:

 

Subject: RE: Problem

 

 

 

 

 

Has it been longer than 90 days?

 

 

 

JAKKS PACIFIC, Inc.

 

Michelle Venegas

 

Consumer Relations Representative

 

21749 Baker Parkway

 

Industry, CA 91789

 

(877)875-2557 Fax: (909) 594-3200

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

 

From:

 

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 12:34 PM

 

To: Michelle Venegas / JAKKS Pacific, Inc.;

Subject: RE: Problem

 

 

 

Under a year, but I don't have any proof of purchase or original

 

reciept. I

 

don't want it to end up in a land-fill for want of a tiny part that I

 

can

 

replace myself when it is otherwise working fine. It is literally a 1/4"

 

by

 

1/4" rubber button with a carbon dot inside it. When you press it, it

 

completes the circuit. It is supposed to spring back into it's original

 

shape, but it doesn't. It compresses and then doesn't spring back.

 

 

 

Donovan

 

 

 

 

-----Original Message-----

 

From: Michelle Venegas / JAKKS Pacific, Inc.

 

[mailto:michellev@jakks.net]

 

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 12:02 PM

 

To:

 

Subject: RE: Problem

 

 

 

 

 

How long have you had this product for ?

 

 

 

JAKKS PACIFIC, Inc.

 

Michelle Venegas

 

Consumer Relations Representative

 

21749 Baker Parkway

 

Industry, CA 91789

 

(877)875-2557 Fax: (909) 594-3200

 

-----Original Message-----

 

From:

 

Sent: Friday, August 18, 2006 9:53 AM

 

To: consumer

 

Subject: Problem

 

 

 

I have an Atari 8-in-one Jakks Plug and Play TV Game that has developed

 

a

 

problem. The carbon dot button under the fire button does not return to

 

it's

 

original shape after being depressed, instead remaining pressed and

 

causing

 

the fire button to fire intermittently and repeatedly. It is a small

 

yellow

 

square of rubber-type material with two legs that plug into the PCB, and

 

a

 

carbon dot, that the orange plastic fire button assembly pushes down

 

onto

 

the PCB to close the circuit and register a button press.

 

 

 

Can I purchase this replacement part directly from Jakks?

 

 

 

 

 

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail message is intended only for the

 

person(s) or organization(s) to whom or which it is addressed and may

 

contain information which is confidential and privileged. The

 

unauthorized

 

use, copying, distribution, or disclosure of this e-mail or any of its

 

contents by anyone other than the intended recipient is unauthorized and

 

unlawful. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the

 

sender immediately and destroy all copies of this transmission. Thank

 

you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail message is intended only for the person(s) or organization(s) to whom or which it is addressed and may contain information which is confidential and privileged. The unauthorized use, copying, distribution, or disclosure of this e-mail or any of its contents by anyone other than the intended recipient is unauthorized and unlawful. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately and destroy all copies of this transmission. Thank you.

Edited August 19, 2006 by Paranoid

[atwwong]

Unfortunate but typical "big business/suit" type of reply... They won't care unless they get a ton of complaints and it gets publicized and hurts their sales, because providing a small replacement part goes beyond their own concerns when it comes to making $$$.

Edited August 19, 2006 by atwwong

[Paranoid]

Which is kind of why I'm posting here. Anyone have any ideas on how to get this pushed as a "human interest" story? How about a class action lawsuit? I'd love to show how EASY it is to unscrew the joystick, pop out the carbon dot, and replace it, on video... and then say how Jakks wants a device that can be repaired that easily to end up in landfill. That could be the beginning of a PR nightmare for Jakks as a company.

 

Most of their stuff is crap, anyhow, although their Ms. Pac Man stick does make a nice 7800 conversion stick once you rip the guts out of it.

My guess is that their business model is not sustainable, and once they run out of trendy gimmick toys, they'll go the way other toy companies of their sort always do.

[Atariboy]

This is common practice among large companies. The only occurance I've ever heard of about a company providing a replacement part that requires disassembling a unit is Nintendo with cart connectors for the NES.

 

Your wasting your breath complaining about something that isn't going to change, learn to live with it.

[bedouin]

They probably don't even have the part in to give to you. They're assembled somewhere else, aren't they?

[Flojomojo]

Which is kind of why I'm posting here. Anyone have any ideas on how to get this pushed as a "human interest" story? How about a class action lawsuit? I'd love to show how EASY it is to unscrew the joystick, pop out the carbon dot, and replace it, on video... and then say how Jakks wants a device that can be repaired that easily to end up in landfill. That could be the beginning of a PR nightmare for Jakks as a company.

The other side of that nightmare would be trying to track down little pieces at their expense and mailing them all over the globe when they could be focusing on their core business, which is selling packages that were manufactured in China. They're not going to do that. A class-action lawsuit would help nobody but the lawyers involved. Jakks hasn't done anything wrong. They sold you a toy with a 90 day warranty, and it lasted that long.

 

If you're keen to fix your toy, get down to Radio Shack and get the parts you need yourself -- you obviously have an idea of what you're doing and don't need the company's help. I'll bet the thing you're looking for is a standard, off-the-shelf component, or at least something that could be ordered. Or you could do what they suggest and buy a replacement for this thing. Yes, they're intended as cheap, disposable entertainment. There is more plastic placed in the landfill every single day by most individual families than is in the joystick you would be trashing.

[Paranoid]

There is more plastic placed in the landfill every single day by most individual families than is in the joystick you would be trashing.

 

The joystick I would be trashing IS the plastic that families put in the landfill every single day.

 

It just seems ridiculious.

[Flojomojo]

My point is that it's not much more plastic than a few soda bottles. Yes, it would be a waste, but you're talking about shaming a company, class action suits, and other revenge fantasies. I'm just saying that a little perspective would be prudent.

[Paranoid]

Heh.

 

Forget perspective! I'm pissed off and I want a replacement carbon dot!!!

 

I just dislike Jakks as a company, and this kind of confirms that feeling. They're a fly by night kind of company. Everything about their company philosophy says, "screw the consumer, as long as we can convince them to buy our products".

[Paranoid]

I do have a question though. How would you differentiate between this and the Apple iPod issue, where they had a non user-servicable Li-Ion battery that was dying in less than two years, where Apple's policy initially was, "Buy a new iPod", until they got hit with a class action lawsuit?

 

Is it simply what the company charges for the item that makes the servicability of it important? A $20 piece of electronics is disposable, a $300 item shouldn't be? Or, do you think the class action against Apple was inappropriate too?

 

And, the class action did get Apple to take notice and change their policies. A class action isn't about getting your money back, it is about holding a company accountable in the hopes that they will change their methods of operation.

[Atariboy]

You make a big deal out of a lot of things. Browse around and see if you can't find a replacement somewhere, that's what most people do when they need parts for a product when the manufacturer can't supply it.

 

One such example is people going to Digikey for potentiometers for PC steering wheels from Logitech and other such companies. Try looking around...

[jbanes]

All this over a carbon dot? Put a rubberized spring in there and be happy. Yeash.

[Paranoid]

You know, the more I see the people *defending* Jakks, the more I'm inclined to think that more people NEED to make a big deal out of more things...

 

As a consumer, I'm pretty laid back. I'm very flexible and I give merchants a lot of room. But, I also appreciate those merchants that truly rise beyond their competition. Thrustmaster has traditionally been a company like this. When their steering wheel components failed, they would send out, without a warranty check, replacement kits that included all the necessary parts that were subject to failure from wear. I had two of their steering wheels at one point, and received replacement parts kits for both of them for no charge. Not only did they support their product, but they went above and beyond their obligation in supporting the product.

 

American car companies produce shoddy products because American consumers will *purchase* and generally be content with those shoddy products. As long as consumers will allow themselves to be bent over, Corporations will be lubing those consumers up and taking them for a ride.

 

It really isn't any concern to me. I'll never purchase Jakks products again, including their non-video-game products. If you people are willing to, well... it just confirms some of my theories on why it is a good thing that America is an indirect-democracy and a representative republic.

 

[bedouin]

You could buy iPod batteries on-line as long as I can remember. Most of them even came with take apart and installation instructions too, if not on-line videos.

 

That was before the class-action suit.

 

The one-year warranty for my iPod is about to expire and I doubt I will buy Applecare for it. If the hard drive fails, I could probably swap it myself even (maybe with a bigger drive). The guides are all on-line.

[onmode-ky]

Which is kind of why I'm posting here. Anyone have any ideas on how to get this pushed as a "human interest" story? How about a class action lawsuit? I'd love to show how EASY it is to unscrew the joystick, pop out the carbon dot, and replace it, on video... and then say how Jakks wants a device that can be repaired that easily to end up in landfill. That could be the beginning of a PR nightmare for Jakks as a company.

 

You'd love to show how easy it is to void your warranty and then ask for a replacement part? Honestly, I think this has as much chance of success as showing how easy it is to unscrew a PS2 and swap out a faulty piece of the drive mechanism. Companies don't want to support their products after they've been opened up because it's costly to support potential damage that's the fault of the consumer. I heard a story once of a tech support call where a guy called to ask why his laptop wasn't working . . . after he had super-glued the internals back together, after having dropped the machine from a height of several stories. Consumers do all sorts of stupid things; it's a waste of money to support them for stuff that's not the company's fault, and especially with public companies, shareholders don't like that. I'm not saying you specifically have done something costly to the company, but it's a matter of drawing the line at "please don't try to fix it yourself" for the average customer.

 

Most of their stuff is crap, anyhow, although their Ms. Pac Man stick does make a nice 7800 conversion stick once you rip the guts out of it.

My guess is that their business model is not sustainable, and once they run out of trendy gimmick toys, they'll go the way other toy companies of their sort always do.

 

Actually, Jakks Pacific has been around for over 10 years. Their IPO was back in mid-1996.

 

onmode-ky

[Paranoid]

10 years isn't long. They're a pretty new company, on the relative scale.

 

And my warranty wasn't void, it was expired. I wasn't asking for warranty support, I was asking for product support, and I expected to pay for the part (although I would have pleasantly surprised and held a completely different attitude about Jakks if they had provided the kind of support that Thrustmaster has, for example).

 

I understand that there are a lot of consumers doing a lot of dumb things to their products. I don't see how that issue is relevent. I don't see how warranty issues are relevent.

[Paranoid]

Actually, the tone of this thread has interested me since the beginning. I notice that MOST of the reviews of Jakks TV games on most of the retro-sites are pretty critical of their products, suggesting that they're not suitable as anything much more than novelties. But here on AtariAge, despite a lot of sophisticated users, you see a lot of people who actually seem to see these products as suitable. I suppose you see this paradox throughout the retro-community, for example, there is a pretty intense debate on the Big Games retro-arcade mini-arcade cabinet you can get in Target. I personally think it has a Jakks games build quality (read: cheap and badly implemented and sure to disappoint)... but some people see it as a bargain at $499 at Target.

[bedouin]

I have the Jakks paddle game (Super Breakout, Warlords, Circus Atari, some other stuff) and I haven't had any trouble with it. I can't say that it feels any cheaper than the original Atari paddles did (I haven't owned a pair in 10+ years so maybe I've forgotten something).

 

I believe I paid $10 for it, so even if it broke after a couple years it's not a huge loss. I'd replace it with a Stella Adapter and a couple real paddles for use on my Mac and widescreen display if it ever did.

[Paranoid]

(I haven't owned a pair in 10+ years so maybe I've forgotten something).

 

 

I think this kind of illustrates my point.

 

And maybe this is where I'm missing something. Maybe for the average consumer looking for a quick blast of nostalgia and not really interested in a durable, well constructed product, these "novelties" are just that. Which is *why* Jakks continues to produce the boatloads of crap that they do. If you don't care that you got it at Christmas and by June you're donating it to Goodwill, why should Jakks?

 

And I suppose there is nothing technically *wrong* with that. We all by disposable products every day, as was pointed out above.

 

I'm just surprised that this many people on a Retro gaming board are content with the quality of Jakks products... as compared to, for example, the build quality of the Flashback 2...

Edited August 22, 2006 by Paranoid

[jbanes]

Actually, the tone of this thread has interested me since the beginning.

 

Yep. It's been nothing but "Whaa! McDonald's won't sell me parts to fix my Ballerina Barbie I got from a Happy Meal! This is rediculous, GM provides replacement parts for cars! Whaaa!"

 

 

In case this isn't getting through to you, you're acting like a three year old who's toy broke. Worse yet, you have the skills to fix your toy on your own, but you'd rather come whining to mommy about it. So you come looking for sympathy and get a cold shoulder. What were you expecting, a kiss on the boo-boo?

 

The facts of the matter are:

 

1. You have the skills to fix the problem even without Jakks' help.

2. Even if Jakks wanted to provide you the part (which makes no fiscal sense), they'd have to travel to Hong Kong and rip it off a tape reel to get it to you.

3. It's a bloody TOY. You've played it until it wore out. Now you can either fix it yourself or get a new one.

 

As for your misguided complaints about landfills filling up with these, MOST of the customers aren't going to be wearing out their units that fast. For example, I have several Jakks sticks in excellent condition (despite heavy play from children), and they'll probably follow my antique game collection for the next few decades. From what I've seen with other sticks, they'll similarly get saved, stuck in a closet, or resold to a good home. Not all that many of them will end up in the trash.

 

So how about you act your age rather than throwing pointless temper tantrums about class action lawsuits?

[Paranoid]

Own some shares, d'you?

 

This isn't a McDonalds throw away toy (and honestly, McDonald's toys are generally of a decent quality with good replay value. Let's agree to use BK and Carl's Jr. as the example of irresponsible happy-meal toys. Jack tends to use recyclable cardboard toys of an environmentally friendly nature, which is a novel approach. They do not directly address the reason why, though.)

 

These things cost upwards of $30. Jaaks wouldn't have to do SHIT extra except set up a billing system to collect payment and send off an invoice and then have their supplier/manufacturer drop ship the requested parts to the consumer in a Jakks labeled box. It could all take place with an EDI type transaction scheme that was fully automated. It wouldn't be *difficult* to implement at all. It would take some effort that a lazy, profit-raping company may not see the initial value in. I was reading their prospectus, and it looks like they're going to wildly forge their way into business not very similar to their core competency, which is USUALLY where companies like this go wrong, so I'm hoping within the next several years, I'll have an opportunity to tell you, "I told you so".

 

Re: "Makes no fiscal sense". The first industrialists made billions figuring out how to make 100ths of a cent off of livestock hooves. There is very little that you can attach a price to, that DOESN'T make fiscal sense to make available, if you can do so profitably. It is all about figuring out how to make it profitable. Of course, you're well aware of this.

 

I didn't play with it until it wore out, I picked it up used. I don't buy Jaaks products. They're crap. I was trying to save this one from the land-fill (and I probably still will, you're absolutely right).

 

In the meantime, for every 1000 of these sticks that Jakks makes, there is probably 1 guy like me willing to take the time and effort. Sitting in storage in your HOUSE is inevitably the same as ending up in the landfill, especially if it is broken. So yeah, before you support a company like this, that puts out shoddy products that it doesn't support, you should ask yourself if that is the best idea. I'd rather see companies like Jakks get a strong message, and companies like Atari get a strong POSITIVE message for their contributions to this segment. Oddly enough, the sentiment seems oddly backwards for this, an Atari forum.

[keilbaca]

Just open up a broken controller and use that to replace it.

 

*shrugs* Or better yet, use the product and modify it into a mini arcade made out of particle board. Add arcade buttons, etc. if you're gonna toss it, I'll take it, I can always use a new project, especially one on the arcade making type.

Edited August 22, 2006 by keilbaca

[Paranoid]

Oh, and I suspect that the only reason I'm getting a "cold shoulder" is because I'm largely preaching to the choir, outside of a handful of people who, for whatever reason, feel a need to vocally defend this company.

[Paranoid]

Keilbaca... I actually have a carbon dot from the RSI sticks I've pulled apart that will work, but it is smaller, and I'd need to glue it to the PCB somehow... I'll probably end up doing that, but if I could have gotten this part, it would have been a much cleaner and more reliable fix. It is more a "the principle of the thing" issue to me.

[jbanes]

Oh, and I suspect that the only reason I'm getting a "cold shoulder" is because I'm largely preaching to the choir, outside of a handful of people who, for whatever reason, feel a need to vocally defend this company.