TERMINATIONS

[BadgeBabe]

There's a lesson here- if you are suspended, you probably won't know how long the suspension will last. I was suspended, and some Pogo pencil- pushing moron turned it into a permanent termination of my account at the end of the 72 hour suspension.

I hope no one has this happen to them, but if it does, and if you were UNFAIRLY targeted, I hope you will go to the EA.com website and go through the algorithm drop down menu to file an appeal. IF anyone needs any help on what to say and how to proceed, please PM me and I will walk you through the process, as it is fairly complicated.
The EA.com website stinks as far as dispute resolution goes, but it can be done. This is the ONLY format of communication that Pogo acknowledges.

Please remember to be polite even though you are furious, use Dear Sir or Madam, and use the words " please review" .

Also, if you have been a Pogo member since the Stone Age with no problems, tell them that too. They are NOT going to check your Pogo member history to see that you have played for 7 years with absolutely no problems unless you type into your appeal " Pogo has been a joyful experience in my life for 7 years. I have played many years with no problems of any kind. Please review my account history to see that I am not a troublemaker". LOL.

State your case, if you have a valid one like the emoticon thing was, and there's a very good chance that you will get your account back.
I did. I wouldn't have if I hadn't appealed my termination with sound reasoning and polite and friendly emails through the EA.com system, though. Once they terminate an account, they are through with that person unless the player goes through the appeals process in a timely manner.

Best of luck to ALL of us on keeping our Pogo accounts for as long as Pogo is around!!! <3 <3 <3

[gator8_24]

If you go to private chat are the logs kept of that also?  That's the only way I talk to my friends. Othewise I don't talk in chat. So if turn off chat, can pogo or anyone else in that room, see the progress 'reports' made when working on a badge and using auto?

I would be in big trouble for typos in chat!

I was suspended for 72 hrs once, a friend used a glitch to get me a badge, trouble is she kept going till all ranks complete. But I wasn't the only one and it was written about in the "News"

Pogo  sees everything. I for one think that "private"  should mean just that!
It has got to the point nothing or nowhere is safe anymore. Use caution! ;)

thanks, fortunately we mostly gossip and don't talk about the auto programs.  lol We learned on another site, a racing site, that even our PMs (we feel) are not private so we talk here  :))) :ll

[xx_mandy_xx]

If you go to private chat are the logs kept of that also?  That's the only way I talk to my friends. Othewise I don't talk in chat. So if turn off chat, can pogo or anyone else in that room, see the progress 'reports' made when working on a badge and using auto?

I would be in big trouble for typos in chat!

I was suspended for 72 hrs once, a friend used a glitch to get me a badge, trouble is she kept going till all ranks complete. But I wasn't the only one and it was written about in the "News"

Pogo  sees everything. I for one think that "private"  should mean just that!
It has got to the point nothing or nowhere is safe anymore. Use caution! ;)

thanks, fortunately we mostly gossip and don't talk about the auto programs.  lol We learned on another site, a racing site, that even our PMs (we feel) are not private so we talk here  :))) :ll

that stinks...nothing anywhere online or in real life is sacred to anyone anymore!

[busterssugar]

iwanttowin2...i am in need of your help....could u tell me to file an appeal..for the last hour ive been searching and cant find it anywhere...thank u very much in advance for your help...i was terminated for get this saying...." i dont play a nut"...pogo has become unreal...

[BadgeBabe]

Busters,
Yes, I will be happy to help you. I see that you don't have enough posts here for Private Messages or I would definitely take this private.

Here are the steps:
1) On the Pogo home page, click the HELP button in the upper right corner.
2) You will then get the EA.com site.
3) Select the tab which says CONTACT US.
4) You will see a blue Log In page. Enter your Pogo screen name and password. This is a secure page.
5) You will then get the screen you need for your appeal. First you have to select the correct options. Here's what they are-
6) Select these options from the drop down menu:
Platform is PC
Game is Pogo Games
The particular game can be any Pogo game. Just make sure it's filled in with something.

Over to the right, in the CATEGORY, which has two drop down menus, you want to select Account Management and Billing Support.
Next menu you want to select Suspensions and Terminations.
Next menu you want to select Suspension.

Then, you have a wide open page to type what you need to say to Pogo/EA.
I had to email them about 5 times before my Termination was removed, so I suggest that you open a Word program and do all your work there, then go to the EA site, log in, copy and paste  your appeal iinto the EA site.Your log-in DOES expire after a period of time because it is a secure log in. ( Kind of like PayPal does).

You want to state that you are appealing your Suspension. Whatever else you say to them is up to you, of course, but the nicer you are, the nicer they will be too. LOL.
Please remember to address them as Dear Sir or Madam, and to thank them for reading your appeal and for their consideration of your explanation.


Now, remember that a 72 hour suspension is not a critical matter to EA.com.
ALL suspensions are for 72 hours unless it is a strange matter that requires investigation on EA's part, such as a hacked account requiring an IP addy trace or something.
I don't expect your account to be terminated UNLESS you have had numerous Suspensions for something really bad in the past.
Their really sore spot is member screen names or profiles which have been reported as being obscene.

EA's policy on Suspensions states:
Breaking any of Electronic Arts' Terms of Service or games' Rules of Conduct can get your account terminated.

>>Usually, the first offense on an account will result in a 72 hour suspension. <<<
Any offense after the first can result in your account being terminated. Please be aware that in some cases accounts are terminated on the very first offense. In most of these cases there will be an email sent to the email address that we have on file for you to describe the reason that the account was blocked.

I hope this helps. I will check back to see if all went well with you. :)

          Lily

[busterssugar]

unreal..i have been terminated because i said..and to think i did it without doubles..and i dont play a nut...
thats it for pogo..if u can get terminated for something of that nature..it is a site i want no part of...i had over 600 badges and 36 mil in tokies.
i get an email saying that once a account is terminated nothing else u can do...im sending all correspondence and im filing a report with the better business bureau...i may be only one person..but im sure im not the only person to have gone thru such bull...im not going to even try to get it back...its not worth it...u play games u get cursed out for winning...its not a fun site anymore..just a bunch of syco's...thanks for your help iwant..alas it didnt help me to try and fight it...if any one has any suggestions thanks!...id appreciate it..but i dont think it would do any good...pogo is a legal mob..<admin edit> unreal..i am absolutely shocked...no i dont play a nut...can u even believe such bull...

[BadgeBabe]

Wait!! You got TERMINATED instead of a 72 hour suspension? I read that in your post, but most people get the two terms confused.

I am SO sorry about this.

Again, I would like to say that if you had posted here longer, I would be able to tell you these things in a Private Message, but I can't. I am sorry.

You can still appeal a Termination. You are right, you did pay for Club Pogo, and if what you say you said is what they have in the chat logs they keep, then it is a miscommunication. English is a second language for most of EA's staff, at least for the ones who communicate with the public.

Call EA at one of the toll free numbers, and ask them how to appeal a Termination when you can't sign in to EA.com's site.

I had to do it, I did it, I kept on keeping on, I stated my case several times with evidence, and got my account back. 
You probably can get yours back too as long as you haven't pissed them off beyond repair because you are upset.

Please stay calm. One other thing I learned from dealing with a plethora of different people at EA on the phone is that their Tech Administration people are located outside the USA ( India I think).
Also, everyone I spoke with on the phone had a very heavy accent and most did not speak English very well, so there is a need to be very calm, speak slowly and with respect and state things in very simple language.
NO disrespect is meant to anyone of another culture, I am simply trying to explain the difficulties I experienced and how to overcome them.

OR..... Ask for ALEX!!!! Demand Alex!!!  <..> <..>

Seriously, Alex is the only person at EA who had any common sense about my account termination.
He is solely responsible for first getting my account unsuspended, then having the ( supposedly final)  termination lifted! This happened because the same lowlife player reported me a second time for the same thing once they saw that I was back online, the report went to another Pogo Team member, and they terminated my account!!

They CAN lift a Termination.
I am living proof.

Another thing- During the process, there was a time lag between my breakthrough conversation with Alex, and the Tech Admin. people being able to open my closed account due to differences in time zones between the US and either India or Asia ( I am not sure which he said it was now).

I was very afraid that I would lose all my badges while waiting for the Tech. people to do their thing. Alex said that a Club Pogo member's account stays on their server forever. It is never deleted, even after the account has been terminated, or when people stop paying for Club Pogo.
I believe him because all my badges and tokens were there.

Oh, and  I got 2 free months of Club Pogo without even asking  ( I was so happy I wouldn't have asked for anything) just because THEY made a mistake.

I know how you feel, and I really hurt for you. There was not much laughter in this household for a couple of weeks...
but if what you say you said is all you did, and if you have never had Suspensions before, then I believe they will rethink their decision to do a Termination of account.

[busterssugar]

hi! and thank you for your sympathy..yep thats what i said...and i got terminated not suspended..i cant even sign onto ea to see "my stuff" section...it is unreal...i can not believe this has happened...and evey email ive gotten from them has been from someone named rajesh  or ahmet..or some other indian name...it is unreal...i try to sign on  and it says ive been blocked...i am at a total loss...

[BadgeBabe]

Busters,
Did you read my post about phoning them and asking them how to appeal a Termination when you cannot log in?

Hold on, I will get the information for you. Will return ASAP.

        Have faith!
          Lily

[BadgeBabe]

To Busterssugar and anyone else who might need help with a Terminated account which you want to appeal:

I contacted EA at 1-888-854-4446 and  Alex was such a kind and helpful guy once again!!

Here's a copy and paste of his instructions to me on the behalf of a player with an account in trouble and whose account is BLOCKED so that the EA support form is out of reach.

The info below applies ONLY to people who have had a permanent block placed on their account:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Response  09/21/2006
Greetings,

Thank you for contacting Electronic Arts.

If another player needs to submit their information for review, please ask them to go to the following site:

http://support.ea.com/cgi-bin/ea.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=17

Look for the link that says 'Click Here' and fill out the request information in addition to details about the situation. If you have any further questions or concerns please reply to this email or visit our extensive knowledge base online at http://support.ea.com.
Thank you,
Alex I.
EA Online Support
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To Bustersugar:
I believe  I could have gotten help for you with Alex while I was on the phone with him, as he asked for the player screen name or email addy. He definitely remembers me from my screen name termination incident because it was so unusual and really funny, in retrospect. He is a very dedicated and intelligent person and we worked very well together to get my screen name restored. 

Of course, your screen name and other identifying information is not something we share publicly on this forum, and please do not post it for any reason.

For any of you who got a Termination for a reason you believe is a misunderstanding and you want to appeal the decision, I hope you will consider working with EA Staff with respect and anticipation of a good outcome. You may get your account back if you have a valid argument against their decision.
They want our business, and there are some very nice people there.

Remember: They are used to being screamed at and cursed at all day long. A sense of humor and kindness causes YOU to stand out with them, and will cause them to listen to YOU in a positive way. :)

          I care! O0

                                  Good luck!
                         
                                  Lily

[xgingerx]

Pogo is p----ing alot of ppl off....i tho it was a place to play games...they love the $$ we send...we pay for that place to keep up and running...Homer plz buy Pogo so we can play as we want  :)) Tara you tell him ok?

[BadgeBabe]

Pogo is p----ing alot of ppl off....i tho it was a place to play games...they love the $$ we send...we pay for that place to keep up and running...Homer plz buy Pogo so we can play as we want  :)) Tara you tell him ok?

I see both sides of the problem. I panicked, cried, ranted and raved to hubby when my account was blocked.. blocked twice within a month for the thing which they had already resolved with me once. I knew my screen name was not obscene and EA/ Pogo had determned the same thiing, but when the guy who was stalking me reported me once he saw me back online. When the first line Pogo team which reads the reports saw that there had been a recent suspension for the same reason, they automatically terminated my account. They may not have the ability to look into account records like people in Tech. Management do.
The second time it happened, I almost didn't bother with doing anything. I felt really angry. It was unfair, mostly from the reporting player's side, but it wasn't a roadblock for me because I believe in fighting for what's right. Besides, we all know that sometimes, things in life are unfair, but usually can be fixed.

OTOH,  IF you or me or Johnny DoeDoe has done something that is truly offensive on Pogo, then it is NOT negotiable. We have to take responsibility for our actions.

It's every player's choice and right to appeal action taken against their account if they truly did not do something with malice or indecent intentions. EA has resolution processes in place for the player's right to appeal. They do read the forms with the explanations and take the person's rationale into consideration.

Obscenity is their really touchy subject!
As I understand it, Pogo's Action Team which receives the complaint messages from players regarding obscenity on Pogo are very likely to take immediate action, usually a 72 hour suspension if there is any evidence that the report meets their criteria for obscenity. This is due to their ESRB ( Entertainment Safety Rating Board)  rating, and is probably tied somewhat into their contract with AOL. AOL has a " family friendly" policy regarding young teens, and so does Pogo. When I was asking questions about how my account was thought to be in violation and what criteria is used for these things, I learned a lot about the ESRB rating system and how Pogo wants to keep their site in compliance as being family friendly. You can read about the ESRB rating system at www.esrb.org

A Suspension or Termination is not an all or nothing issue. Almost anything which is truly " iffy" in nature, that is, it could be interpreted different ways when NO malice or obscenity was intended, can be negotiated through communication. That's why they put the formats in place for players to appeal suspensions and terminations.

They can't KNOW what people really meant or what an obscure term might mean to the player unless the person talks to them about it. The great Pognini has left the site, and no one is a mind reader. :)
If people get angry, rip off a nasty email or make a rude phone call to EA, then they have probably pretty much blown their chances of getting any help with their account.

It's really frustrating when things go wrong with Pogo. They have so many players online that they really are NOT singling any of us out. They act first based upon the reports they receive and what they can see that supports the report, if anything exists.

                                     Happy playing!
                                      Lily

[busterssugar]

good sunday morning everyone!
lily, thank you for all your information!!! you are worth your weight in gold..as i am sure i can not believe im the only one that has had such a problem...
well i followed your link and set a letter to fight the termination..i did that on thursday....but have heard nothing back yet....should i send another?....i don't want to be a "pest" so to say...i was very polite and reasonalbe...hard to do in pogo land sometimes..lol... >>:D..but, alas, i was....
i am still completely dumbfounded by this whole situation...they really are taking this suspension and termination thing to a god level on their part...so keep fingers crossed...i was going to give up..but i just can't..now it is a principle thing...to get terminated for saying "i dont play a nut" and " i did it without doubles" is taking this wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy to far!!!..
wish i could copy into here what i said so u could see the ridiculousness of this!!!
and did i mention i am truly missing my auto use...man i am this close to finishing lottso!!!! friggin pogo :pp

[Lish]

sorry everyone is having so much trouble :(  This has gotten ridiculous.  I don't even keep chat on anymore.

[Carol]

sorry everyone is having so much trouble :(  This has gotten ridiculous.  I don't even keep chat on anymore.

Yes, same here! Even to talk to a friend I go to a messenger, never in pogo chats. Never know what you might say that might a offend someone, like hello maybe.  :(
I am so sorry this happened to you Busters and I wish you the best of luck in getting your account back!  0:
Got fingers & toes crossed for you!  ;::

[Julie]

good sunday morning everyone!
lily, thank you for all your information!!! you are worth your weight in gold..as i am sure i can not believe im the only one that has had such a problem...
well i followed your link and set a letter to fight the termination..i did that on thursday....but have heard nothing back yet....should i send another?....i don't want to be a "pest" so to say...i was very polite and reasonalbe...hard to do in pogo land sometimes..lol... >>:D..but, alas, i was....
i am still completely dumbfounded by this whole situation...they really are taking this suspension and termination thing to a god level on their part...so keep fingers crossed...i was going to give up..but i just can't..now it is a principle thing...to get terminated for saying "i dont play a nut" and " i did it without doubles" is taking this wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy to far!!!..
wish i could copy into here what i said so u could see the ridiculousness of this!!!
and did i mention i am truly missing my auto use...man i am this close to finishing lottso!!!! friggin pogo :pp

Good luck in getting your account back, hope all goes well for you! :)

sorry everyone is having so much trouble :(  This has gotten ridiculous.  I don't even keep chat on anymore.

Same here, I don't bother with the chat either most of the time.  People on Pogo these days are just too overly sensitive and too easily offended, never used to be like that ::)

[BadgeBabe]

good sunday morning everyone!
lily, thank you for all your information!!! you are worth your weight in gold..as i am sure i can not believe im the only one that has had such a problem...
well i followed your link and set a letter to fight the termination..i did that on thursday....but have heard nothing back yet....should i send another?....i don't want to be a "pest" so to say...i was very polite and reasonalbe...hard to do in pogo land sometimes..lol... >>:D..but, alas, i was....
i am still completely dumbfounded by this whole situation...they really are taking this suspension and termination thing to a god level on their part...so keep fingers crossed...i was going to give up..but i just can't..now it is a principle thing...to get terminated for saying "i dont play a nut" and " i did it without doubles" is taking this wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy to far!!!..
wish i could copy into here what i said so u could see the ridiculousness of this!!!
and did i mention i am truly missing my auto use...man i am this close to finishing lottso!!!! friggin pogo :pp

Busterssugar!
You are very welcome for the assistance. I know what you are feeling like without Pogo. I hope it will be resolved in your favor very soon.

I am so glad you came back and read what I found out for you. I was so afraid that you had given up and gone away for good.

USUALLY, an EA support person will email with you or phone you to discuss your appeal on the phone. They are much more likely to phone you if you have called them, of course. Again, I refer you to Alex, as he is the only person who was helpful to me. I have always had the best luck with the phone number I posted in my last post to you.
They do have your information that you sent them in their system. Chances are, they are reviewing it, and should send you an email or phone you with questions ( if the credit card information on your Club Pogo account is still valid like phone number and email addy).

They may send you an email asking for more information. Since you can't log onto Pogo, it will have a space to type in a response only in one area of the email. It says-
POST YOUR REPLY BELOW THIS LINE


POST YOUR REPLY ABOVE THIS LINE.

You have to be careful to follow the directions when you hit the reply key and post only to them in that one area or the email will be kicked out of their system.

I know they have a lot of rules, but they do have a lot of really mad people bombarding them with obscene phone calls, email with viruses and cursing them, and so forth. I think many of the EA.com rules are in place because the staff was abused so much in the past by online EA gamers ( not Pogo players). EA has quite a few online RPGs and people are really extreme in some of them.

To the best of my knowledge, as long as you make an honest and nice effort to communicate with them and have your termination removed IF you have a valid counter- argument, they will work with you to understand your point of view and consider your Pogo history as well.

IF a person really blew it by clearly violating the TOS with a screen name, profile or some kind of really bad chat, they don't have a chance of getting their account back.
If a player does something on Pogo that they wouldn't want their mother to know about, it's probably not going to pass through Pogo either, if someone reports you.

Please keep us up to date about anything that's happening. I think you have a good chance of getting your account back, acording to your side of the story, and if it happened recently. A player can't appeal a suspension or termination that isn't recent.

You asked if you should write again. If you have a copy of what you sent them, you might resend it. I wouldn't write something else which is different.

However, if I was in your place, I would call 1-888-854-4446 and speak with ALEX. If someone else answers, I would ask for Alex. If he is not available to take your call, I would call back until I reached him ( either on another day or at another time).
He does usually seem to be the one who answers this one phone number. :)
I think the human element of speaking to a nice staff member makes a lot of difference IF IF IF you can do it with kindness and respect. ( I admit that I  cried when my account was in limbo and I tried to explain my point of view, but I definitely kept my cool ). Being hurt is very understandable, and I think a player's passion for Pogo also touches the staff members more than someone who says " I paid for this and I want it" or " I will sue you over my money".

Pogo and EA is how they make their living, so they have to feel loyalty to EA/ Pogo. If a player shows a large measure of the same loyalty and talks with a support person about their years of playing peacefully and happily on the site without problems, this does matter to them a lot.

To everyone who comes across this issue: I wish all of you who are struggling with Pogo account problems the best. Be patient, be kind to Pogo staff, be persistent IF you have a valid reason to appeal, and please please don't curse or yell at them. The staff had much rather have us as members than terminate player accounts.
Like the other person posted, it was your fellow player who reported you, not Pogo who found anyone's supposed online offense.
If you want to avoid problems in the future, make sure your Pogo profile is either blank ( safest)  or very nice and clean without anything questionable. Most of all, to be really safe, don't chat. 

[RusticanaAna]

 :-\  I hope you are able to re-open your account.  Good Luck with your efforts.  I can tell you they do not appreciate repeated pestering.  They seen to figure once is enough.  They are simply s     l       o         w          e      r    at replying.
I have been warned twice now for spam????  They consider jokes spam.  Go figure....  No sense of humor?  So, unless I know the person, I do not send any there.
Secondly does the chat problems include private chat also between 2 folks?  If anyone has had problems in private will you let me know?  Forewarned is forearmed, as it were, and I will do as Napolean did not by exercising discretion as the better part of valor.
Thanks

[BadgeBabe]

Hi, Rusticanna and welcome to PC!
I can answer the part about Pogo private chat. IF you are privately chatting with someone on Pogo's chat system and that person reports you, Pogo states that they cannot distinguish between the room chat logs and the private chat logs which they have on all games.

You are subject to the exact same TOS in private chat that you are in a game room at present. Pogo has expressed an interest in changing their system, but they have not done so yet.

I suppose that if you want to chat with a person you know in real life, the only way to do so privately is through an IM off Pogo's system. There's no one I want to talk to that badly to share my identity with, but you might feel differently.

[RusticanaAna]

Hi Iwanttowin2...
Thanks for your reply and double thanks for your welcome...I am enjoying the forum.

I will keep my wits about me.  I do not use private chat indiscriminately.  It is not worth losing my subscription for Pogo.  I have seen and been a recipient of some of the off the wall chat and I just leave.  As I say, I love Pogo and have been playing since early 90's.  Their system, flawed as it may be at times is more sophisticated and friendly, as far as I am concerned, than any other I have found on the net.

Again, thanks for your comments.