Video Professor
Encyclopedia
Video Professor, Inc. is a U.S. company that develops, manufacturers and offers tutorials for a variety of computer-related subjects, such as learning to use Microsoft Word
, Microsoft Windows
, and eBay
. Video Professor was founded in 1987 by John W. Scherer
and is located in Lakewood
, Colorado
. It was known in the U.S. for its ubiquitous commercials and infomercials on late night television.
. In 1987, DLRS produced its first VHS
tutorial primarily for its own customers, Introduction to DOS. Scherer says that he quickly realized that the tutorials were more profitable than the PC clones, and in 1988 the company switched to focusing solely on the tutorials, and changed its name to Video Professor.
The company was perhaps best known in the U.S. for its frequent late-night commercials and infomercials, most of which featured Scherer. The company's first infomercial was aired in 1991, and since then all but one of the commercials and infomercials had been produced by an in-house production team. The production values of the commercials were intentionally kept minimal. The company started with VHS
lessons, but began offering its lessons on CD-ROM
in 1996, and online in 2003. Lesson sets were primarily sold through TV offers and online, and in later years, Scherer reached his target audience by repeatedly using the redundant
phrase "learning lessons."
, similar to the model for mail order
book clubs
. The subscription started when a customer ordered a tutorial on a subject of their choosing. This tutorial was often free except for shipping and handling. The customer then periodically received other tutorials on subjects chosen by Video Professor automatically, until the subscription was cancelled. The cost ranged from $60–$399 per tutorial. For online lessons, the same lessons are provided to the customer through streaming media
. These lessons are billed on a per-month basis; access to all lessons is available for a monthly subscription fee of approximately $30.
Video Professor also used this business model in conjunction with social media
gaming services such as OfferPal and SuperRewards. Users are offered in game currency if they sign up to receive a free learning CD from Video Professor. The user is told they pay nothing except a $10 shipping charge. But the fine print, on a different page from checkout, tells them they are really getting a set of CDs and will be billed $399.99 unless they return them. According to Michael Arrington
, the founder of TechCrunch
, Video Professor is an Internet scam.
The company has been criticized for its CD-ROM sales and advertising practice. Some complaints center on an alleged lack of clarity regarding the nature of the continuity sales model and the "free" CD-ROM. Others are based on the lack of choice the customer has in subsequent offerings. The company says that such complaints are rare, and promptly resolved. According to Video Professor it is standard policy to take 30 business days to issue a refund on any returned items.
In the state of Colorado, by business, the top 10 complaint-getters for 2009 were:
By business, the top 10 complaint-getters for January and February 2010 were:
The company is now focusing on its Video Professor Online lesson delivery where lessons are streamed directly to the customer's computer, with the customer having temporary access to the entire learning library versus owning individual lessons. Video Professor, Inc. is currently undergoing "reorganization," and has placed most of its employees on unpaid furlough. Their phone lines are also shut down. Consequently, existing customers are unable to contact the company for refunds, cancellations, technical support, or customer service. Despite knowing the company’s demise was imminent. Video Professor continued to accumulate debt with advertising and marketing companies. This as well as other unethical business practices has the company’s management under heavy scrutiny and criticism. Video Professor has also lost its rating with the Better Business Bureau
In 2009, Video Professor tried and apparently failed to raise $10 million in cash. Despite its omnipresent cable television commercials in recent years, Video Professor's sales went from $140 million in 2006 to less than 1/3 that two years later.
In May 2010, Video Professor apparently closed its doors, possibly for good. No one is responding to customers' calls, emails or letters, and neither the company nor John Scherer has acknowledged or responded to at least one recently-filed lawsuit challenging the way in which they market their products through television advertising. Lawyers who have previously have represented Video Professor in court have not responded to recent inquiries. John Scherer's Denver area home is up for sale, and he has not blogged on his own blog or Video Professor's blog, or tweeted through his "VidProf" Twitter account, since late April 2010.
The company's corporate headquarters in Lakewood, Colorado are also for sale at a price of $2.875 million. This is exactly $1 million more than the company's purchase price of the building in 2002. According the company website at www.videoprofessor.com, Video Professor is now owned in part or full by Falan Funding Corporation which is based in Scottsdale, AZ. It appears that customers who didn't receive refunds prior to the ownership change will lose their money and not be refunded.
John W. Scherer, former CEO of Video Professor has just launched a new website promoting himself as a public speaker and as talent for commercials. Video Professor itself no longer uses Scherer's image in its own online advertising, although it did for a few months after the company's assets were sold in early 2010.
Scherer's Denver mansion is also up for sale for just under $3 million.
Video Professor, Inc. changed its name to Content Distributing, Inc. a few months ago, and recently filed for bankruptcy in Colorado Dist. Bankruptcy Court (Case No. 10-34729 MER).
The holding company Falan Funding is owned by Robert Elliott Alpert. The Arizona corporation File Number for Falan Funding is F-1459848-0.
The legal action launched by the company was criticized by the consumer advocacy group, Public Citizen
. As part of their action, Video Professor requested and received the IP addresses of registered Wikipedia users from the Wikimedia Foundation Inc, the publisher of Wikipedia, who posted what Video Professor claimed was defamatory information about their business. Video Professor sent Internet provider Comcast
a subpoena
for the user identity of the IP addresses; however, Comcast refused, stating they only relinquish that information under court order
, not subpoena. In late December 2007, Video Professor Inc. withdrew its lawsuit against John Does 1 through 100 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
The company has also made claims of defamation and trademark abuse against several publications, including Uncyclopedia
in December 2008, demanding that all content relating to the Video Professor be removed within 48 hours. Uncyclopedia has not, as of July 2011, removed said content.
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is a word processor designed by Microsoft. It was first released in 1983 under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including IBM PCs running DOS , the Apple Macintosh , the AT&T Unix PC , Atari ST , SCO UNIX,...
, Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, and eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
. Video Professor was founded in 1987 by John W. Scherer
John W. Scherer
John W. Scherer is well known for being the "face" for Video Professor, as he stars in all of the infomercials for Video Professor's products.-Biography:Scherer was born in St. Charles, Illinois, United States, North America...
and is located in Lakewood
Lakewood, Colorado
Lakewood is a Home Rule Municipality that is the most populous city in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Lakewood is the fifth most populous city in the State of Colorado and the 172nd most populous city in the United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that in April 1, 2010...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. It was known in the U.S. for its ubiquitous commercials and infomercials on late night television.
Company founding and marketing
The company was an outgrowth of Data Link Research Services (DLRS), a seller of PC clones founded in Colorado in 1987 by John W. SchererJohn W. Scherer
John W. Scherer is well known for being the "face" for Video Professor, as he stars in all of the infomercials for Video Professor's products.-Biography:Scherer was born in St. Charles, Illinois, United States, North America...
. In 1987, DLRS produced its first VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
tutorial primarily for its own customers, Introduction to DOS. Scherer says that he quickly realized that the tutorials were more profitable than the PC clones, and in 1988 the company switched to focusing solely on the tutorials, and changed its name to Video Professor.
The company was perhaps best known in the U.S. for its frequent late-night commercials and infomercials, most of which featured Scherer. The company's first infomercial was aired in 1991, and since then all but one of the commercials and infomercials had been produced by an in-house production team. The production values of the commercials were intentionally kept minimal. The company started with VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
lessons, but began offering its lessons on CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
in 1996, and online in 2003. Lesson sets were primarily sold through TV offers and online, and in later years, Scherer reached his target audience by repeatedly using the redundant
Tautology (rhetoric)
Tautology is an unnecessary or unessential repetition of meaning, using different and dissimilar words that effectively say the same thing...
phrase "learning lessons."
Business model
For CD-ROM lessons, Video Professor used a continuity sales modelContinuity sales model
A continuity program is a company’s sales offer where a buyer/consumer is agreeing to receive merchandise or services automatically at regular intervals , without advance notice, until they cancel.-How a Continuity Program Works:...
, similar to the model for mail order
Mail order
Mail order is a term which describes the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote method such as through a telephone call or web site. Then, the products are delivered to the customer...
book clubs
Book sales club
A book sales club is a subscription-based method of selling and purchasing books. It is more often called simply a book club, a term that is also used to describe a book discussion club, which can cause confusion.-How book sales clubs work:...
. The subscription started when a customer ordered a tutorial on a subject of their choosing. This tutorial was often free except for shipping and handling. The customer then periodically received other tutorials on subjects chosen by Video Professor automatically, until the subscription was cancelled. The cost ranged from $60–$399 per tutorial. For online lessons, the same lessons are provided to the customer through streaming media
Streaming media
Streaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
. These lessons are billed on a per-month basis; access to all lessons is available for a monthly subscription fee of approximately $30.
Video Professor also used this business model in conjunction with social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
gaming services such as OfferPal and SuperRewards. Users are offered in game currency if they sign up to receive a free learning CD from Video Professor. The user is told they pay nothing except a $10 shipping charge. But the fine print, on a different page from checkout, tells them they are really getting a set of CDs and will be billed $399.99 unless they return them. According to Michael Arrington
Michael Arrington
J. Michael Arrington is the founder and former co-editor of TechCrunch, a blog covering the Silicon Valley technology start-up communities and the wider technology field in USA and elsewhere...
, the founder of TechCrunch
TechCrunch
TechCrunch is a web publication that offers technology news and analysis, as well as profiling of startup companies, products, and websites. It was founded by Michael Arrington in 2005, and was first published on June 11, 2005....
, Video Professor is an Internet scam.
The company has been criticized for its CD-ROM sales and advertising practice. Some complaints center on an alleged lack of clarity regarding the nature of the continuity sales model and the "free" CD-ROM. Others are based on the lack of choice the customer has in subsequent offerings. The company says that such complaints are rare, and promptly resolved. According to Video Professor it is standard policy to take 30 business days to issue a refund on any returned items.
In the state of Colorado, by business, the top 10 complaint-getters for 2009 were:
- National Energy Rebate Fund 627
- DirecTV 169
- Claim Specialists, Inc. 161
- Timeshare Rescue 124
- GNS, Inc. 119
- Video Professor, Inc. 112
- At the Beach 109
- Dazzle Smile 103
- Dish Network 73
- Qwest 60
By business, the top 10 complaint-getters for January and February 2010 were:
- National Energy Rebate Fund 130
- Dazzle Smile 87
- At the Beach 78
- Hort Financial Services 54
- DirecTV 51
- Dish Network 27
- Corporate Acquisitions Group 22
- Qwest 19
- Vacation Ventures 19
- Video Professor, Inc. 15
The company is now focusing on its Video Professor Online lesson delivery where lessons are streamed directly to the customer's computer, with the customer having temporary access to the entire learning library versus owning individual lessons. Video Professor, Inc. is currently undergoing "reorganization," and has placed most of its employees on unpaid furlough. Their phone lines are also shut down. Consequently, existing customers are unable to contact the company for refunds, cancellations, technical support, or customer service. Despite knowing the company’s demise was imminent. Video Professor continued to accumulate debt with advertising and marketing companies. This as well as other unethical business practices has the company’s management under heavy scrutiny and criticism. Video Professor has also lost its rating with the Better Business Bureau
In 2009, Video Professor tried and apparently failed to raise $10 million in cash. Despite its omnipresent cable television commercials in recent years, Video Professor's sales went from $140 million in 2006 to less than 1/3 that two years later.
In May 2010, Video Professor apparently closed its doors, possibly for good. No one is responding to customers' calls, emails or letters, and neither the company nor John Scherer has acknowledged or responded to at least one recently-filed lawsuit challenging the way in which they market their products through television advertising. Lawyers who have previously have represented Video Professor in court have not responded to recent inquiries. John Scherer's Denver area home is up for sale, and he has not blogged on his own blog or Video Professor's blog, or tweeted through his "VidProf" Twitter account, since late April 2010.
The company's corporate headquarters in Lakewood, Colorado are also for sale at a price of $2.875 million. This is exactly $1 million more than the company's purchase price of the building in 2002. According the company website at www.videoprofessor.com, Video Professor is now owned in part or full by Falan Funding Corporation which is based in Scottsdale, AZ. It appears that customers who didn't receive refunds prior to the ownership change will lose their money and not be refunded.
John W. Scherer, former CEO of Video Professor has just launched a new website promoting himself as a public speaker and as talent for commercials. Video Professor itself no longer uses Scherer's image in its own online advertising, although it did for a few months after the company's assets were sold in early 2010.
Scherer's Denver mansion is also up for sale for just under $3 million.
Video Professor, Inc. changed its name to Content Distributing, Inc. a few months ago, and recently filed for bankruptcy in Colorado Dist. Bankruptcy Court (Case No. 10-34729 MER).
The holding company Falan Funding is owned by Robert Elliott Alpert. The Arizona corporation File Number for Falan Funding is F-1459848-0.
Video Professor lawsuit
In September 2007, the company filed a lawsuit against 100 anonymous posters of critical reviews, stating their belief that the negative reviews were the result of a competitor's efforts to damage Video Professor's reputation. Most of the negative reviewers were critical of Video Professor's practice of automatically charging customers' credit cards $189.95 for the first lesson as well as each subsequent month after their "one free disk" offer, complaining either that they were not informed or had difficulty canceling the charges.The legal action launched by the company was criticized by the consumer advocacy group, Public Citizen
Public Citizen
Public Citizen is a non-profit, consumer rights advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., United States, with a branch in Austin, Texas. Public Citizen was founded by Ralph Nader in 1971, headed for 26 years by Joan Claybrook, and is now headed by Robert Weissman.-Lobbying Efforts:Public Citizen...
. As part of their action, Video Professor requested and received the IP addresses of registered Wikipedia users from the Wikimedia Foundation Inc, the publisher of Wikipedia, who posted what Video Professor claimed was defamatory information about their business. Video Professor sent Internet provider Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
a subpoena
Subpoena
A subpoena is a writ by a government agency, most often a court, that has authority to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of subpoena:...
for the user identity of the IP addresses; however, Comcast refused, stating they only relinquish that information under court order
Court order
A court order is an official proclamation by a judge that defines the legal relationships between the parties to a hearing, a trial, an appeal or other court proceedings. Such ruling requires or authorizes the carrying out of certain steps by one or more parties to a case...
, not subpoena. In late December 2007, Video Professor Inc. withdrew its lawsuit against John Does 1 through 100 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
The company has also made claims of defamation and trademark abuse against several publications, including Uncyclopedia
Uncyclopedia
Uncyclopedia is a satirical website that parodies Wikipedia. Founded in 2005 as an originally English-language wiki, the project currently spans over 75 languages...
in December 2008, demanding that all content relating to the Video Professor be removed within 48 hours. Uncyclopedia has not, as of July 2011, removed said content.