I'm sorry to say that my long-time lover affair with DeepDiscount.com has come to an abrupt end. I've always been a fan of their low prices and free shipping, but even better is their price match. If you find it cheaper anywhere, they'll match it. Well, that's what I thought anyway. But they took so long to respond that the DVD deal I asked them to match had finished, and with it, my price match.

I suspect the first question you have is the obvious one - "Why not just buy what you want at the place you found it cheaper?" Well, there are several good reasons for this. One, you may not have done business with this company before and either have trust issues or worry about promptness of shipping. Two, you may want to order several DVDs and would rather do it in one place than over several sites (this also helps with combined shipping costs). My reason was just as simple...I found the stellar deal at BestBuy.com and I'm no fan of Best Buy. I would rather have given DeepDiscount my business.

FOTC

Flight of the Conchords - The Complete First Season

The DVD in question was the first season of Flight Of The Conchords, an excellent series that was on offer for less than half price at Best Buy, around $10. I contacted DeepDiscount's PRICE MATCH hotline and sent them the information they requested on November 26th. Then I waited. Two days later I got a reply. Not what I was hoping for, they wanted a hyper-link to the specific page on BestBuy.com so they could verify that I wasn't pulling a fast one.

I immediately sent back the information, urging them to please hurry because the deal was due to end (and also if they couldn't match it in time, I would bite the bullet and buy it from BB...of course, I didn't mention that part in the reply, which I probably should have done).

I played the waiting game again. I waited, and waited. On December 5th, after hearing nothing, I sent another note to DeepDiscount. And today, I finally got my reply...it was not good news. DeepDiscount had waited so long to do the price match that the offer at Best Buy was over. And thus, their price match was no longer necessary.

So, what have I learned from this? Well, I'll never bother with DeepDiscount's Price Match because the system is just way too slow and cumbersome. I will also buy a product when I see it on a super sale, because now I'm out of pocket and out of time to find a better deal. Alas, my holidays will be spent without the mighty Conchords. If you do plan to get a price match from any store on line, don't count on getting a prompt reply. You may be better off just snapping up the better deal while you can.