The CIC (Coupon Information Center) Exposed For What They Really Are - And it's not about informing you.

Hello everyone and welcome to long-awaited CIC expose. "CIC" is the abbreviated name of the

"Coupon Information Center" or as their website states "Coupon Information Corporation." Either way, it's still bad for you and your family despite this bemusing facade they have. And here, we are going to expose why with real terms in real time. Worst of all, by explaining what their purpose really is - in their own words.

Before we launch into some "reality" about the CIC, let's point out the one good thing that they do - notify the public about truly fraudulent coupons and practices. This list of fraudulent coupons and offers seems to be updated quite frequently and gives just about the only "information" that consumers should be aware of. I think we all can agree that people that make coupons and commit real coupon fraud should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. And as so eagerly boast here that they have never lost a case while working with law enforcement. The CIC is not a legal body and has no legal authority whatsoever! This kind of verbiage gives the false impression that the CIC is some arm of the law regarding the monitoring of coupons and their use and transactional process throughout the industry. But an impression is all it is , and all it should be to you and your family as this entity as a whole has no legal authority whatsoever in the real world. It's easy not to lose a case when you catch people red handed with fake coupons committing coupon fraud in a store and someone calls the cops. Let's be real here. The CIC works for the retailers and manufacturer's.

Who does the CIC work for?

And this is where we being to unravel what exactly the "Coupon Information Center/Corporation" is really about. Below is a list, taken from their own website, regarding who they "represent" which we all can easily say "sponsored by" or even a better translation - "Paid By:"

 

They "represent" the companies above by doing the following below:

The third bullet point and the notation at the bottom is where the true focus should lie. "Continuously seek new and better ways to protect their shareholders' assets," and "you owe it to your shareholders, employees and clients and "other" stakeholders...to participate in the CIC - the industry's only watchdog group."

Only watchdog group?

If you can find me another entity that includes every single one of the manufacturer's listed above, to regulate their coupons and provide "loss prevention" (aka people using coupons) well hat's off to you. People must read these posts and when I talk about "coordinated efforts to shut down coupon sales, savings and promotions," that I am some kind of a crazy person. I know I would think of it that way too. But they are all "coordinated" with the CIC now aren't they? I mean, they admit it above. Can't get any more crass than that.

Coupon Sales on the Internet

This is our favorite topic. And here's the CIC's take on that. From here on out we can pretty much assume the term "CIC" includes every single retailer above as that is who they "represent" and are "paid by:"

Oh my dear friends at the CIC, you really should update this section with all of your achievements over the past year! Like being the sole reason that webstore.com has restricted coupon sales as shown here via a message I received last summer:

But even this is conflicting as per this webstore.com response, you can still charge for your time and supplies, and per the CIC screen grab previously, you can't do that as it "admits you are doing something improper." Improper is different than illegal. Improper is letting your 15 year old daughter sext out her nudes to her 24 year old boyfriends' friends. Hell, that's more "illegal" than this. And even less "improper."

So their theory is shot one way or the other, either it is or it isn't. Besides, who in 2014 actually still uses that terminology? That terminology was born in the mid 1980's from work from home scams stuffing envelopes for thousands of dollars in cash a month that never seemed to appear. Maybe they should update this too.

And of course, they were a driving force behind the massive eBay selling coupon policy change that was instituted last year. At least for the top two lines, instead of "should" it really should now say "all." 

Except Couponfleamarket.com. How that is even still running with all of this going on is a mystery to me. It can't be for much longer.

The last four bullet points are amazing and take this misconception of what the CIC really is saying to that special level. Every one of those statements say "may." Let me ask you, in legal terms, does any law regarding this say "may?" It is legal or is it not.  If an officer arrests you and charges you with theft, when he reads you your rights does he say "you may have stolen that item?" Nope.

May we have some clarification?

The Non-Transferability Clause

Sheeple on the internet as well as trolls that drop snippets and parrot from the CIC on coupon and eBay discussion boards will tell this to you until they are blue in the face. 

Like it is law. 

Like it has a law. 

Isn't the "non-transferability clause" a contradiction in and of itself?

If it is such an ironclad thing, then well, why isn't it a law already and why hasn't it been enforced?

The rationale of why it can't be enforced is actually pretty simple. Think about the common chain-of-possession of the coupons and inserts from your Sunday paper.

They are transferred from the retailers and manufacturer's to Red Plum and Smart Source (the two primary,) this is transfer via sale #1. 

Clearly, they don't send them to them for free.

Transfer via sale #2 is Red Plum and Smart Source selling them to your local newspaper to place in their newspapers to sell to you. If they didn't, how many Sunday papers would they really sell? 

This is transfer via sale #2.

Transfer #3 is completed when you walk into your store or into the newsstand and purchase your paper. 

So by the time you actually get them in your hands, the non-transferability clause HAS ALREADY BEEN BROKEN THREE TIMES !!

And now once it hits your hands, it is supposed to magically kick in and be Gospel. If you sell them, you are breaking the clause, if you give or get them from your grandmother, you are breaking the clause. If you are a newspaper delivery person and purchase them from the newspaper to deliver, you have also broken the clause, as has your customer. If you donate the coupons to charity. You are breaking the clause.

Lots of criminals out there. 

This above is exactly why selling coupons is not illegal. 

I want to see that law stand up in court. It never will and it never will because it makes no sense. Any coupon that states "void if transferred or sold" is in violation the minute the manufacturer sells the image to Red Plum and Smart Source to reprint, reproduce and profit off of.  But according to the CIC:

"Any sale or transfer voids the coupon." See the statement above the screenshot, then re-read it all again. 

See why there is no law and this is nothing more than smoke and mirrors?

My absolute favorite snippets here are the parts about "people purchasing coupons have often been associated with organized criminal activities," and "individuals selling coupons to crime rings have been charge and convicted of criminal violations."

If this isn't enough to scare a sheeple person or someone given this link for "Coupon Information" wouldn't be scared out of their wits thinking if they buy a coupon on eBay that they are on the same playing field as the mob, then I don't know what is.

It is probably the most ridiculous two paragraphs on their entire site.

Re-read them again and think about what they are saying to you, with absolutely no law on the books to back it up !! 

What absolutely is mafia-like is consorting with the manufacturer's that pay you to "watchdog" how their coupons are being used and distributed to stop "loss prevention" for their "shareholders, stockholders and parties with interest."

But hey it sounds cool to call the housewife , stay at home mom, someone trying to supplement their income or unemployed person trying to make a few dollars to survive in this brutal economy a mobster!

That will scare them off !

The only way they could potentially get you for reselling coupons is via a copyright infringement for the "use of their images without consent for profit." But that clause simply doesn't exist on a coupon, it has this ridiculous "clause" that people worship as the Word of the CIC Gods.

The reality is far different.

The reality is that the "Coupon Information Center / Corporation " is nothing but a strong arm for the manufacturers who want to tell you what coupons to use, in what area to use them in, where to use them, what price point to use them at and how many you can use at once using deceptive and manipulative practices to give the impression of being "law enforcement" to protect the interests of the shareholders, stockholders, employees (translation: six figure management), and parties with interest of the manufacturers listed above.

We have proven this here. In their own words nonetheless. People just have to step up their knowledge and education.

This isn't an "information center," it is a bully pulpit.

If you sell or buy coupons you are a gang banger and a mafia member and contribute to organized crime rings.

But only after that sacred clause has been broken three times before you even touch your weekly insert.

Better get the paddy wagon, there are about 33,000 criminals on eBay right now. That doesn't even count the buyers or bidders, probably closer to a quarter million.

 Prosecute the real criminals, not the people selling legitimate coupons.

Leave the rest of us alone.

Thank you for reading.

Please click here for the July 2016 update to this posting!