DVO Enterprises Inc.

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: Dan O***, owner of DVO Enterprises, wrote me on Friday, June 17, with the same response that he submitted to the Revdex.comHe offered no solutionHe suggested that I cut back on grocery spending or eating out so that I can try his club for $per monthI wrote him back and the response is below.Hi Dan Not meaning to be disrespectful, but it is hard for me to believe that I’m sitting in my home and browsing the internet and happen to see a recipe of interestI capture this recipe through my Cook’n program and it cost you moneyThe same with a scanIf a friend stops by for a visit and states, “I brought you a recipe that I think you will like”So I open up Cookn’and scan his recipe into Cook’n How does this cost you money? I have other similar programs that deal with photosOne of these happens to be ***If I’m browsing the internet and happen to come across a picture that I would like to capture and use as my background, I use ***The capture did not cost *** nothing and the only thing it cost me was the original purchase of the program and my timeI have another program called Paintshop Pro and there is no cost to Corel if I capture a pictureI don’t see writing me offering different solutions like not going out to eat one night per month, or cutting back on the grocery bill just a bit as a solutionThis letter is not about my hardships but I only draw $per month from Social Security and never go out to eat and can barely make it from month to month paying my bills, including buying groceriesIn my opinion, if you had developed Cook’n and before its release, stated your new policies and a membership fee, people would have had a choiceWhen I bought your software, every aspect of Cook’n was workingSix months down the road, limitations are put on Cook’n through a digital updateIf one could see into the future, I would have never bought Cook’n I would have remained with Cook’n and would have stayed a happy camperThis is why I ask that you allow unlimited capturing and scanning of recipes as the program originally did when I purchased or give me a refund in the amount of $59.96, Order Number ***, purchased on October 17, 2015. Respectfully,*** ***
Sincerely,
*** ***

"Now this company will start charging $a month, starting May, 2016, to use these same features included in the software."This is not correct Tech support and cloud & web services are no longer free However, you can still use Cook'n to organize an unlimited number of your
personal recipesYou can make menus and grocery shopping listsYou can analyze the nutritional value of any recipeYou can e-mail recipes to family and friends, print a family cookbook, and scale your recipesYou can type in what you have on hand and Cook'n will tell you what you can make for dinner, and so much more."This is just classic bait and switch"If this is true, the entire software industry is guilty of bait and switch because just about every technology company is switching to a SaaS (Software as a Service) business model "I can understand cloud costs, but to limit advertised features that made a consumer buy their product, is fraud"The customer is mistaken She is under the impression that the internet recipe Capture and Scan features in Cook'n are not web services...but this is not the case If you disconnect from the internet and try to capture or scan a recipe, it won't work That's because these are web services When you scan a recipe, the image is sent to a DVO server where it is processed and OCR'd (translated from an image to text) The text is then sent back down to the client The same thing happens when you capture an internet recipe If this customer can, as she says "understand cloud costs" hopefully she will understand that these web services come with a cost as well.They deleted my posts and blocked me from posting on their pageThere are plenty of both positive and negative comments on our Facebook page This customer's comments were deleted and she was banned from posting when she began to issue threats.At 5:18pm on Monday, this customer sent an e-mail with a similar complaint At 8:19pm the same evening, Barbara responded and said "I really want to help youWe do offer a generous day refund period for product purchased from our websiteWhat is your Order Number?" But the customer never responded to that message.Instead, at 8:32am on Tuesday, the customer responded by saying "It is NOT ok to block, ignore or ban a customerI will be filing a complaint with the following...This is all worth it to you to not refund my $40? This is the LAST email I will be sending to you, and you have one LAST chance to address my refundI will file my complaints with these entities tomorrow if I do not hear from you."Barbara escalated her e-mail to me but before I could respond, she filed a complaint with the Revdex.com at 1:42pmThat was confusing because in the e-mail she sent that morning she said "I will file my complaints with these entities tomorrow if I do not hear from you" and then you went and filed the complaint a few hours laterAfter that, she started spamming Amazon with negative posts

Hi ***,I would be happy to help youYou can cancel a subscription at anytime by emailing [email protected] link to our cancellation page is included in the 'Welcome Letter' that all customers receive. Did you look at your Welcome Letter? Thank you

You didn't purchase a service *** You purchased a product.I purchased a new car recently The manufacturer promoted the fact that the car came with XM Radio It was awesome! I could listen to CNN and Fox News TV shows as I drove to work However, not long after my purchase, I discovered that the XM Radio wouldn't work unless I paid a monthly fee to Sirius XM.I got a new Android phone recently as well and it was advertised that the phone had 4G data transmission capabilities However, unless I subscribe and pay a monthly fee to a carrier and pay for a data plan, I cannot transmit data at the 4G rate that was advertised.Similarly, you purchased a product that is capable of connecting to a Cloud service and you got to use it for a while to try it out similar to XM Radio You can continue to use the service for a monthly fee.I must pay a fee each month to store your recipe data in the cloud and all those food photos take up a lot of space! I must pay for every read and write operation too which means that every time you sync to the Cloud, it costs us moneyEvery month, these Cloud costs grow higher and higher I wish I could pay these fees for you forever...but, unfortunately, I cannot.You can use the product that you purchased forever without paying anything more But if you choose to use the cloud & web services or tech support services, you must pay a fee

Hi ***,Thank you for your loyalty all of these years. I created Cook'n and founded DVO years ago. You and many others have been with me for a long, long time. I understand that. I appreciate and value that! Thank you for your support all these years!We've seen many
major changes over the last years and we've had to adapt to survive. Would you believe that the first version of Cook'n came out before Windows even existed? It was DOS-based? At one point in time 99.9% of our revenue came from sales in the retail channel. Then, the internet came out and we had to change our business model and adapt.We had to establish a presence on the web and learn how to market Cook'n on the internet. We also had to modify Cook'n and build web technologies into the app. That was no small feat.Over the years, many software companies including many large companies were unable to adapt to changing market conditions and went out of business. We, on the other hand, adapted, established a strong web presence, and thrived.But then, mobile apps and cloud computing came along. Instead of creating one app for PC computers, we had to create an app for PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android Phones, Android Tablets, Kindle, and Nook devices. And, we had to create a Cloud platform that would sync recipes between all of these different devices. It cost millions of dollars to develop these technologies and this platform and it took years to perfect them.Not only did we have the up front development cost, but we also incur ongoing costs to support it. For example, when Apple releases their new Sierra operating system for Mac computers and breaks Cook'n so it won't work anymore, I must pay programmers to fix it so you don't even know there's a problem. When Microsoft released Windows and changed things so Cook'n didn't work anymore, I had to pay programmers to fix it and post an update so you don't even notice. Apple and Google release new versions of the iOS and Android operating system about every months!When allrecipes.com or Pinterest change the format of their web pages and breaks the Capture feature, I must pay my programmers to fix this so the feature keeps working for you. This sort of thing happens just about every day!I must pay a fee every month to store your recipe data in the cloud and all those food photos take up a lot of space! I must pay for every read and write operation too which means that every time you sync to the Cloud, it costs me moneyThis is a cost that we didn't have a few years ago and, every month, these Cloud costs grow higher and higher.When you get a virus on your computer or suffer a hard disk failure after a power outage, you contact my support department and expect them to help you recover your recipes. I must train and pay tech support agents to help you.These are real costs that are ongoing. Many of our competitors were unable to make this transition and most of them have gone out of business. Living Cookbook is the most recent to fall and it's unfortunate for those who spent years entering and collecting hundreds of their recipes into that app. Now they're stuck. So sad. If we didn't change our business model and adapt to changing market conditions, we would go out of business too and that wouldn't do you or anyone else any good!Go to Best Buy or Walmart or Sam's Club or Costco or Office Max or any retailer for that matter, look around, and you will see that they don't even have a software department in their stores anymore! The computer software industry has shifted. Everything has gone mobile. And, software companies have all moved to a SaaS Business Model (Software as a Service). We made a similar change. You can read all about it here and you can also see answers to frequently asked questions as well: http://www.dvo.com/msg/premium-membership.phpWe made this change because we had to. It wasn't optional.The good news is that you can keep using the Cook'n product forever without paying anything more. Optional services like Cloud Storage & Sync services, tech support services, and other web services like Capture and Scan, and upgrades are available but they are for subscribers only.The other good news is that this new business model is more affordable than the last! In the past, Cook'n users had to pay $to get the newest Cook'n upgrade...but now members can get upgrades for only $per month!And, as more people subscribe the price just keeps going down and down. It started at $per month then dropped to $and now you can get unlimited sync and capture for only $4.95.This is not a land grab. We're not screwing the general public. Kathy and I have literally put everything on the line. We spent everything we had and more to provide something amazing to our customers...and we have delivered. Cook'n is really amazing and it works great. There's no other kitchen tool quite like it.We hoped our customers would value that and subscribe (in fact, we bet the farm on it!) and they have!! On the one hand, there are a few dozen complaints on the web about the change and, on the other hand, there are thousands and thousands who get it, who have subscribed, and who are loving it!I hope you will join us and stick with Cook'n. You can unsubscribe at any point in time so, subscribe for one month and then unsubscribe if you like...then subscribe again for more days four months from now for only $(less than the cost of a hamburger at McDonalds). You won't regret it!It's a new era of Cook'n and it's going to be even better and more exciting than the last. The train is leaving the station. Don't get left behind ***!

This complaint indicates that the customer paid $79.99 for Cook'n 12 in November of 2015.  This is not correct.  The customer actually only paid $55.96.  The customer used coupon code "[redacted]" to get a 30% discount for Cook'n 11.  This purchase was made on September 12.The...

customer received coupon code "[redacted]" which entitled her to one free cookbook.  This customer used that coupon code to download the "Diabetic Meals in Minutes" cookbook (a $10.36 value) for free.  Then, the customer used that same coupon code again on September 17 to download the "HomeCook'n 2014 Collection" cookbook (a $19.95 value) for free.  The customer used that same coupon code again and again and again to download"Gooseberry Almost Homemade Cookbook" (a $10.84 value)"The Healthy Homestyle Cookbook" (a $9.95 value)"What's For Dinner" (a $12.79 value)"50 Pies" (a $4.95 value)"Taste of Home Cookbook" (a $24.95 value)"Secrets from the White House Kitchens" (a $22.95 value)In total, this customer used her voucher for one free cookbook to illegally download 7 additional cookbooks totaling $106.38.The claim also states that unless she subscribes, she will either be severely limited or have no access to the features I purchasedThis is not correct.  The only thing she will not be able to do is access free tech support services, store her recipes in the Cook'n Cloud, or get free upgrades.  Just like most other technology companies, these support and cloud services are available to those who subscribe.The customer can use Cook'n forever to organize an unlimited number of her personal recipes. She can make menus and grocery shopping lists. She can analyze the nutritional value of any recipe. She can e-mail recipes to family and friends, print a family cookbook, and scale her recipes. She can type in what she has on hand and Cook'n will tell her what she can make for dinner, and much, much more.

"When I tried to type some recipes in last week, I found out that they are holding my cloud recipes hostage..."You have full access to all of the recipes that you've typed into your computer and you can type in an unlimited number of new recipes as well.  Nobody is holding any of your recipes...

hostage.You can keep using the Cook'n product that you purchased forever without paying anything more.We're only charging for services like Cloud Storage & Sync services, tech support services, and other web services like Capture and Scan, and upgrades.The good news is that you can subscribe to one of the membership plans and get these services for as low as $4.95 per month. This new business model is more affordable than the last!  In the past, Cook'n users had to pay $64.95 to get the newest Cook'n upgrade...but now members can get upgrades for only $4.95 per month!I noticed that you are using Cook'n Version 11 which is about 3 or 4 years old.  This might be a good time to consider upgrading.  For a one-time fee of only $4.95, you can upgrade to Cook'n Version 12 for free (a $64 value).  Click to http://www.dvo.com/cooking-club.php for more information about this special offer.

Hi [redacted], Thank you for contacting us.  I understand that you "simply want the unlimited scanning and capturing recipes turned back on as it was when the program was originally purchased."And, I see you mean.  If I thought that arbitrary limits were imposed simply to motivate me to...

subscribe, I would be really upset as well.  However, this is not the case with Cook'n.Just like the Cook'n Cloud service, the capturing and scanning of recipes are web services.  In order to provide these services to our users, we incur a cost each month.You can use Cook'n for as long as you like without paying anything more.  We're only charging for services such as tech support, cloud services related to sync, and web services related to capture and scan.  And, we are NOT charging these fees to make ourselves rich as some might think.  We are only charging these fees because we cannot afford to provide these services for free.  If we could, we would!I understand that the idea of paying $14.95 every month forever may seem out of reach for some and can be daunting to others. I also understand that some people don't need the free cookbook, the newsletter, the forum, and all the other fantastic perks that come with the Premium Membership Plan. Some just want sync and capture. No problem. We plan to offer more affordable pricing options soon. So, don't ask yourself if you can afford to pay $14.95 per month for the rest of your life because the price won't be $14.95 for the rest of your life. Instead, just ask yourself if you can afford to pay $14.95 THIS month.How much does it cost for you to eat out, $15, $20, $30? If you eat at home just one time this month instead of eating out because of Cook'n, then Cook'n just paid for itself.If you download one cookbook this month, then your membership just paid for itself.How much did you spend on the last Cook'n upgrade? $60? Well, you won't ever have to pay that again.How much did you spend at the grocery store last month, $600, $800, $1,000? The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that food is the third-largest household expense. Wouldn't it be great to have a tool that could help you reduce your third-largest household expense? Do you think Cook'n could help you cut that $800 grocery bill by $14? If so, your membership just paid for itself. If not, maybe you're not using Cook'n to its full potential. That's one of the reasons the Premium subscription comes with a weekly newsletter and a 5-Day Meal Plan...to help you get the most out of Cook'n!Annette Economides, co-author of Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half with America's Cheapest Family, says "The less you shop, the more you save." So, can the menu planning tools in Cook'n help you save gas by making it easier for you to plan your shopping trip so that you get a week's worth of groceries in one shot? If so, Cook'n just paid for itself. Can having your shopping list on your phone in Cook'n help you reduce impulse purchases? If so, Cook'n just paid for itself!Does food ever go bad in your fridge? We waste a remarkable amount of food every year. Some studies note that between 14-25% of the food we bring home from the grocery store ends up in the trash. Can Cook'n help you make use of some of the food in your fridge? Before you hit the grocery store, can you use Cook'n to search the web to see how to get more meals out of what you already have? If so, your membership just paid for itself.How do you make sure the food you purchase--and all of the effort you put into making sure it's healthy and affordable--doesn't go to waste? Use Cook'n! Still have half a pack of bacon from last week? Use Cook'n to help you discover and try a new recipe that uses it! Got a bunch of vegetables left over? Use Cook'n to search your favorite recipes for one that needs them (or something that can use all of them, like a stir fry)! If you do this, your membership will pay for itself.In addition to saving you time and money at the grocery store, Cook'n can inspire you to cook at home more. And, those who use Cook'n frequently tend to eat less fast-food and more home-cooked meals. If you discover a recipe in Cook'n and get inspired to cook at home just once during the month instead of eating fast food, the Premium Cook'n Membership just paid for itself.Ultimately, subscribing to the Cook'n Premium Service is a decision that only you can make and you need to do what is best for you and your family. We strongly believe that a Premium Cook'n Membership will easily pay for itself. If not, we wouldn't be doing this. So, think about it. Try it for one month and see if it's worth $14.95 for you. If you don't use Cook'n and take advantage of the features...then just don't subscribe again next month.Dan

"I don’t see writing me offering different solutions like not going out to eat one night per month, or cutting back on the grocery bill just a bit as a solution."-->I didn't write to you and suggest that you not go out to eat one night per month.  I said that food is the third-largest household expense according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and that the Cook'n Premium subscription, with it's 5-Day Meal Plans, weekly newsletters, menu planning, and grocery shopping list features will help you cut at least $14.95 from your monthly food budget.  I said that a "Cook'n Premium subscription will easily pay for itself. If not, we wouldn't be doing this.""If one could see into the future, I would have never bought Cook’n 12. I would have remained with Cook’n 11 and would have stayed a happy camper."-->The Cloud services, tech support services, and other web services like Capture and Scan are available to subscribers only...including those who have Cook'n Version 11.  So, if you had remained with Cook'n 11, there would be no difference.  Version 11 users must also subscribe to use these services."...it is hard for me to believe that I’m sitting in my home and browsing the internet and happen to see a recipe of interest. I capture this recipe through my Cook’n 12 program and it cost you money. The same with a scan."-->I don't mean to be disrespectful [redacted], but the answer to this question can be found on http://www.dvo.com/msg/premium-membership.php  We created this web page with answers to frequently asked questions to help you with concerns like this.  The answer to question #8 says:The Internet Recipe Capture and Scan features are both web services. If you unplug your computer from the internet and try to use either of these features, you will see that they do not work. Recipe scans are sent up to a Cook'n Cloud server to be OCR'd (translated from image to text). The recipe text is then sent back down to the client. The Capture feature is similar. All recipe website text is parsed on a Cook'n Cloud server and then the recipe text is sent down to the client.  Since the Cook'n app works on multiple platforms, including PC, Mac, iOS, and Android, hosting this service on a web server makes a lot of sense.  All capture and scan operations funnel through one web service.  Web services like this cost a significant amount of money to provide and maintain.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:  I reread the book that came with my Cook'n software again.  On the second two pages after the welcome letter, all of the features of the software are defined.  One of these features is "Sync recipies with your mobile devices for easy access anywhere".  It doesn't say that there is a monthly fee that is associated with this feature.  It doesn't say that some time in the future we will start charging you for this.  It clearly states that this is a feature that comes with the software along with the other features.  In our communications, the business has told me the same thing time and again - their business model can no longer support their product as it was sold.  They have also told me that since they are getting charged for cloud services, they are passing it on to us with a monthly fee.       I've been a network engineer for 30 years and am well aware of the cost of doing IT business.  It cost nothing for cloud based services after the initial investment.  The price of new Cook'n sales should cover the maintenance and purchase of new hardware to do this function.  You don't charge customers that have already purchased your product additional fees if it was not defined at the time of purchase.  
Sincerely,
[redacted]

I am sorry to hear that you are upset.  It seems that there is some confusion about your Cook'n software.  I am happy to help you clear it up.First, please know that you can use Cook'n forever without paying anything extra.  If you would like to use the Cook'n Cloud and other web...

services, you can subscribe to the Premium service...but this is optional.My options are “Yes” or “No”. Click “NO” and the app closes. Click “Yes”, and ALL recipes disappear.This is not correct.  When asked if you would like to create a Cloud account or not and you click "Yes," all your recipes do not disappear.  If you need help creating a Cook'n Cloud account, please contact [email protected].  We will be happy to help you!Restore from backup, recipes are removed again!This is not correct.  Restoring data from a backup file does not remove recipes.  If you need help restoring your recipes from a backup, please contact [email protected] and we will be happy to help you.Support no longer free – no cost advertised.This is not correct.  We sent an e-mail on 4/25/2016 announcing that were were making a change soon and that support would be available to subscribers only.  But, we haven't made that change yet.  At this point in time, support is still free.  That's why no cost is advertised.What right have you to force us to use YOUR cloud service if you are charging us?This is not correct.  Creating a Cook'n Cloud account is required but there is no fee associated with creating an account.If you need further assistance, please feel free to contact us and we will be happy to help you clear up anything else that you are confused about.

I looked up your order history, [redacted], and I see that indeed you have been a very loyal and valued customer for a long time.  I am very grateful for your support for more than 7 years now.Please know that this is not some scheme that we came up with to trick people.  We're not...

laughing all the way to the bank.The fact is, we invested heavily in creating and perfecting the Cook'n Cloud service, the Cook'n Mobile Apps, and Cook'n 12. This took years to do and cost a fortune (literally). Top notch programmers are very expensive!This investment was necessary because, the reality is, the software industry has shifted. Until now, we made our money by selling a Desktop app for $79.95. People aren't buying desktop apps anymore! If you take a look at Best Buy or Walmart or Sam's Club or Costco or Office Max or any retailer for that matter, you will see that they don't even have a software department in their stores anymore!Market conditions have changed and we had to adapt or die. The alternative is to not change in which case we will go out of business and that doesn't do you or any other Cook'n user any good.  Other software companies are facing similar challenges and that's why they're all switching their business model to SaaS (Software as a Service) and charging a subscription fee.The good news is that you can use the Cook'n Version 11 product that you purchased forever without paying anything more.  These enhancements and new features are yours to keep.  Nobody is taking them away from you.  You can use Cook'n forever without paying anything more.  If you have friends who got Cook'n, they can use Cook'n and derive benefit from it forever too without paying anything more too.  We're only charging for tech support services and Cloud and other web services.I know that you have enjoyed using the Cook'n Cloud for free for years now.  I know that you have enjoyed unlimited sync and capture.  I would like to provide these services to you for free forever and I would if I could!  But, I simply can't.  I would like to pay these fees like I have in the past with the revenue that we generate from the new people who buy Cook'n this month.  But, I can't do that either because people aren't buying desktop apps anymore.  The industry has shifted.  We must adapt.The good news is that the service is optional.  You can choose whether to subscribe or not.  You can subscribe for one month and unsubscribe the next and subscribe again the following month and unsubscribe the next if you like.  It's totally up to you.The good news is that we just came out with a new Standard service that is 33% less than the Premium service.  And, we're considering the idea of creating a Basic service that would be even more affordable.  We're considering offering a discount to annual subscribers.  Over time, this cost will continue to come down.  Soon, your total cost to use Cook'n under the new business model will be LESS than it was before when you were paying for upgrades every year!For example, you can subscribe today for only $9.95 and get the Version 12 upgrade for free.  That's a better deal than it was before when the only way to get the upgrade was to pay $64.And, the other good news is that your Cook'n membership will pay for itself.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that food is the 3rd largest household expense and Cook'n is a tool that is designed to help you reduce your food budget.  If your Cook'n membership shaves just 1% off your 3rd largest household expense, it will easily pay for itself. You can save much more than that if you use Cook'n to its fullest potential...and it's super fun to use too!The good news is that Cook'n is the best there is.  Yes, there are hundreds of cheap and free recipe apps out there but...you get what you pay for.  Nothing is as complete or as robust as Cook'n.  And, Cook'n just keeps getting better and better everyday.Cook'n tech support is more responsive now that we are helping subscribers only and it's affordable too. For example, Microsoft charges $99 for a 1-hour session of tech support service. Many companies charge $30 to $35 per incident for tech support. If you have computer trouble and need Cook'n help, you can subscribe and get unlimited help for 30 days for only $9.95. That's a pretty great deal!I started this company 24 years ago before Windows even existed (the first version of Cook'n was DOS-based).  Needless to say, I have seen a lot of shifts in this industry.  I have seen companies like AOL, Yahoo, MySpace, and thousands of others come and go.  We have survived all these years when most other software companies have not because we adapt well to changing market conditions.  We survive because we take care of our existing customers and they take care of us.  They are loyal to us and we are loyal to them.This is not a land grab.  We're not [redacted] the general public.  Kathy and I have literally put everything on the line.  We spent everything we have and more to provide something amazing to our customers...and we have delivered.  Cook'n is really amazing and it works great.  There's no other kitchen tool quite like it.  We hope our customers will value that and subscribe.  In fact, we've bet the farm on it!

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: Again, I previously purchased this software because of ALL the features THAT WERE INCLUDED. Now this company will start charging $15 a month to use SOME OF the features THAT WERE INCLUDED in this software, AS ADVERTISED and at time of purchase. They will now only allow you to scan 5 recipes and capture 5 recipes for free. This is just classic bait and switch. I am reporting them to Revdex.com. It is a blatant and petty attempt to get previous customers to pay $180 a year. Dan, you really know how to twist things. I did not issue threats. I did what any consumer does, I told you I would have to file a complaint with the Revdex.com because of the bait and switch tactics of your company. If that is considered a threat, what in your opinion are the protections afforded consumers who are being cheated? Ask pretty please? And as for my email telling you I would file complaints, I sent such to you early in the day, at 10:30 am, and by 4:00 pm (my time), which I guess is 1:42 pm (your time), not having heard from you, I was frustrated beyond belief about the situation: no responses, blocking, deleting...that I did jump the gun and I did file my complaint with the Revdex.com. If, as you say, this is a misunderstanding and you were being oh so nice to me as a consumer, I am willing to call it a misunderstanding, accept a refund and dismiss the Revdex.com complaint. I think you have enough on your hands at this point. (And I did not 'spam' Amazon, I did ONE review stating my frustration with the situation, and I commented on several (no where near 20) reviews of other Amazon customers, maybe 5xs. Please don't make your customers out to be criminals. I never have any of these kinds of confrontational situations with companies or people in my every day life. I am 62 years old, my husband was an engineer and I worked in a law office for 30 years before we retired. We are educated, nice people who don't start trouble. Also, my FB post was not threatening, here it is: This is no more than bait and switch. I paid for a software program that had cloud capabilities and full scanning and full capturing, if these items were not in the software, I would not have purchased it. You cannot just sell a program with these features included and then take them away unless we, the consumer, pays you blackmail money. That is called a scam. If you want to charge new purchasers for these items, that is your prerogative, but people who have already purchased this program before you started charging should be grandfathered in and not have to pay for what they already bought. I am not interested in the free upgrades either. So the options are you continue to give old purchasers what they paid for free, grandfathered in, or you refund the purchase price so I can buy a different program. If either one of these options is not offered, I will be reporting your company to the Revdex.com. I have enjoyed this software, but will not continue to use it with restrictions. That is NOT what I initially purchased. I can understand that the cloud is expensive for you, but the end user being able to scan in their own home and capture recipes is NOT expensive to you, and the only reason I can see for you limiting these items, is to FORCE users to pay you monthly. It will not happen.Dan, all you have to do is a simple refund.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Hi [redacted] and [redacted],I have personally responded to every e-mail that you have sent and I see that we have exchanged several.  So, I'm not sure what you mean when you say that your messages "were not responded to except the automated response acknowledging they received my inquiry."In one of...

those messages, you said "My wife has been using that feature for about 2.5 years and loves it."  I am so glad that she loves Cook'n!  I can't tell you how happy that makes me feel!I understand that you are concerned about our new subscription model and upset that you cannot sync to the Cook'n Cloud unless you subscribe.I understand your concern.  Please know that this is not some get rich quick scheme that we came up with.  This is not a land grab.  We're not screwing the general public.  Kathy and I have literally put everything on the line.  We spent everything we had and more to provide something amazing to our customers...and we have delivered.  Cook'n is really amazing and it works great.  There's no other kitchen tool quite like it.We hoped our customers would value that and subscribe (in fact, we bet the farm on it!) and they have!!  On the one hand, there are a few dozen complaints on the web about the change and, on the other hand, there are thousands and thousands who get it, who have subscribed, and who are loving it!This change was not optional for us.  The software industry shifted and we had to adapt to changing market conditions or die!  We literally would go out of business if we didn't change our business model.We've seen many major changes over the last 24 years and we've had to adapt to survive.  Would you believe that the first version of Cook'n came out before Windows even existed?  It was DOS-based?  At one point in time 99.9% of our revenue came from sales in the retail channel.  Then, the internet came out and we had to change our business model and adapt.We had to establish a presence on the web and learn how to market Cook'n on the internet.  We also had to modify Cook'n and build web technologies into the app.  That was no small feat.Over the years, many software companies including many large companies were unable to adapt to changing market conditions and went out of business.  We, on the other hand, adapted, established a strong web presence, and thrived.But then, mobile apps and cloud computing came along.  Instead of creating one app for PC computers, we had to create an app for PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android Phones, Android Tablets, Kindle, and Nook devices.  And, we had to create a Cloud platform that would sync recipes between all of these different devices.  Our development costs skyrocketed!  It cost millions of dollars to develop these technologies and this platform and it took years to perfect them.Not only did we have the up front development cost, but we also incur ongoing costs to support it.  For example, when Apple releases their new Sierra operating system for Mac computers and breaks Cook'n so it won't work anymore, I must pay programmers to fix it so you don't even know there's a problem.  When Microsoft released Windows 10 and changed things so Cook'n didn't work anymore, I had to pay programmers to fix it and post an update so you don't even notice.  Apple and Google release new versions of the iOS and Android operating system about every 6 months!When allrecipes.com or Pinterest change the format of their web pages and breaks the Capture feature, I must pay my programmers to fix this so the feature keeps working for you.  This sort of thing happens just about every day!I must pay a fee every month to store your recipe data in the cloud and all those food photos take up a lot of space! I must pay for every read and write operation too which means that every time you sync to the Cloud, it costs me money. This is a cost that we didn't have a few years ago and, every month, these Cloud costs grow higher and higher.When you get a virus on your computer or suffer a hard disk failure after a power outage, you contact my support department and expect them to help you recover your recipes.  I must train and pay tech support agents to help you.These are real costs that are ongoing.  Many of our competitors were unable to make this transition and most of them have gone out of business.  Living Cookbook is the most recent to fall and it's unfortunate for those who spent years entering and collecting hundreds of their recipes into that app.  Now they're stuck.  So sad.  If we didn't change our business model and adapt to changing market conditions, we would go out of business too and that wouldn't do you or anyone else any good!Go to Best Buy or Walmart or Sam's Club or Costco or Office Max or any retailer for that matter, look around, and you will see that they don't even have a software department in their stores anymore!  The computer software industry has shifted.  Everything has gone mobile.  And, software companies have all moved to a SaaS Business Model (Software as a Service).  We made a similar change.  You can read all about it here and you can also see answers to frequently asked questions as well: http://www.dvo.com/msg/premium-membership.phpWe made this change because we had to.  It wasn't optional.The good news is that you can keep using the Cook'n product forever without paying anything more.  Optional services like Cloud Storage & Sync services, tech support services, and other web services like Capture and Scan, and upgrades are available but they are for subscribers only.The other good news is that this new business model is more affordable than the last!  In the past, Cook'n users had to pay $64.95 to get the newest Cook'n upgrade...but now members can get upgrades for only $4.95 per month!  And it's getting more and more affordable all the time.  As more people subscribe the price just keeps going down and down.  It started at $14.95 per month then dropped to $9.95 and now you can get unlimited sync and capture for only $4.95.I noticed that you are using Cook'n Version 11 which is about 3 or 4 years old.  For a one-time fee of only $4.95 (less than the cost of a hambuger at McDonalds), you can upgrade to Cook'n Version 12 for free (a $64 value).  Follow this link and sign up today while this deal lasts!http://www.dvo.com/cooking-club.phpDan