NewsAmerica, publisher of the SmartSource insert, has been running a campaign in a variety of newspapers offering a $500 reward for information about theft of inserts from local newspapers. From the Sun-Sentinel:
The Sun Sentinel pays for itself in savings with coupons.
But coupon crooks are putting your savings in jeopardy by obtaining the free inserts illegally and selling them on the Internet and through Facebook.
The practice, which is a state or federal crime depending on the circumstances, is yet another example of how unethical use of coupons by extreme sellers and savers hurts all consumers.
But your newspaper is fighting back.
The Sun Sentinel, along with 11 other newspapers and SmartSource publisher News America Marketing, aims to stop the coupon crime with a new reward program… the papers are putting a bounty on coupon crime, offering $500 for “any information that results in stopping individuals or companies that obtain quantities of coupon inserts through unauthorized methods.” Similar ads are running in the Orlando Sentinel, Miami Herald, Fort Worth Star Telegram, Houston Chronicle and Los Angeles Times.
Coupons In The News has additional information:
As the Tribune explained, so many coupons have flooded the market in Tampa, that shoppers there have been redeeming coupons at three times the national rate. And that’s not because the Tribune is selling three times as many Sunday newspapers. News America suspected something else was going on – that inserts were being obtained, and distributed, illegally.Stealing or selling stolen inserts is a crime that is subject to prosecution to the full extent of the law,” Cole said. “In the event that the stolen inserts cross state lines, it may become a federal crime and federal law enforcement may become involved,” he added.
…when it comes to the coupon resellers that News America is targeting, we’re not talking small scale. Some online sellers have been known to display photos of their stacks and stacks of hundreds, or even thousands, of coupon inserts – ready to sell, long before the Sunday paper even comes out. There’s little chance they’re getting their hands on all of those inserts by buying thousands of copies of that Sunday’s paper – several days in advance.
If you ever purchase coupons from an insert seller or a “clipping service”, the outcome of News America’s efforts could ultimately determine whether your source suddenly dries up.
You may remember that earlier this year, the RedPlum insert also pulled out of Florida-area newspapers for what are believed to be similar reasons — to reduce fraud. If SmartSource also pulls its coupon inserts from these markets, there will be an enormous void in the affected areas’ newspapers.
