"There's a lot of
deception, misleading claims in the
industry...There's clearly
(inappropriate) sales pressure in most of
the dating organizations that I'm aware
of, and the person is in an emotional
state and is susceptible to that
pressure. And because some singles feel
reluctant to complain because they've
been taken (advantage of) about admitting
that they're single and perhaps lonely,
they don't often complain to the right
agencies. There's a lot of rip-offs in
the industry and it needs to be
corrected. We're trying to do something
about that at Video
Introductions..."
- Norman Mickey
Ronn Owens Program, KGO Radio
June 1985
|
"The lack of being
loved or having someone to love is probably
the most emotionally damaging thing that
one suffers, and I think it is most
intensified in older people."
- Norman Mickey
- San Jose Mercury News
February 1990
|
"Dating services
aren't regulated in most states. If you're
thinking about joining one ask the
following questions and don't surrender
your money until you get answers."
"Rules for Video Love"
- condensed from 'Things to Look For in a
Singles Dating Service' by Norman Mickey,
Director, Video Introductions"
-Betsy Von Wagner,
Men's Fitness Magazine
July 1990
|
The Nineties
Together dating service offers a settlement in 1995 in a lawsuit resulting from more than 100 complaints received by the Contra Costa County District Attorney's office for misleading customers and refusing refunds. Association of Ethical Matchmakers commences litigation in 1996 against Together for fraud and other unfair business practices, and is a plaintiff in a state of Washington litigation that the Together chain and its knowing participants constituted a racketeering enterprise.
Video Introductions expands
internationally with members in the Philippines
and in Russian countries.
Video Introductions web site is developed.
Exclusive partner compatibility assessment
software is developed.
Norman Mickey submits an original, innovative
concept and proposal to President Clinton's
task force on welfare reform, to help single
welfare recipients get off public assistance
through dating and marital assistance services.
American Association for Single People is
founded in 1999 by attorney Tom Coleman to give
single people the same rights as married
persons.
"King of
Hearts"
"Social Worker Norman Mickey has seen the
ugly effects poor marriages can have on
parents and children, so he's trying to
stop the marriages before they happen. 'I
wanted to do something more socially
redeeming...I turned to social work
because that's where I felt I was doing
the most work for people...Many people
marry for all the wrong reasons... We
shed some light on that and help them
make better decisions the next time
around' ...His contribution to marital
bliss is Video Introductions, a
comprehensive dating service that helps
singles avoid the frogs and get straight
to the princes."
- Dave Thom
Daily Ledger/Post Dispatch
October 1992
|
"Forget nuclear
disarmament and Yakov Smirnoff. The end of
the cold war brought about something much
more momentous, according to the Russian
Connection brochure... the availability of
numerous desirable Russian women with an
amazing attraction to American men. The
Concord based dating service, part of Video
Introductions, provide men (and women) with
opportunities to meet (Russian women and
men)."
- Andrew Gordon
Concord Transcript
February 1997
|
"Norman Mickey,
owner of Video Introductions in Concord,
started his service after years with the
Contra Costa County welfare office. His
experience there gave him the moral
motivation for founding the business. 'I
saw the results of all the bad marriages
and hardship on children that came about
because they didn't have a lot of guidance
in making their decision about the right
person for them initially' he said - he
also offers a conditional membership for
those of lesser means. Payment is made only
upon marriage."
- David Scholz
Argus Newspapers
February 1999
|
The New Millennium
- Will we face up to the
devastating effects of unmet relationship
needs?
"Domestic
violence is the No. 1 health risk for
women between the ages of 15 and 44
Clinton said. Almost one third of the
women killed in the United States are
victims of husbands, ex-husbands or
boyfriends."
- President Bill Clinton
October 2000
|
Almost a very
real casualty of an emotionally demeaning
marriage ending in divorce, a very
wonderful, caring and giving young man
attempts suicide, not knowing where else
to turn.
He subsequently joins Video Introductions
and develops hope and a different
relationship approach through use of
Video Introductions program, including
active participation in the free singles
support group led by Norman Mickey. As a
result, his self esteem and dating and
relationship skills are enhanced. He
realizes the rewards of his venture on
Valentine's day with a new outlook on
life and a level headed, attractive bride
met through Video
Introductions.
- A Marriage
That Almost Wasn't
February 14, 2000
|
"I was scared to
death of failing at male-female
relationships"
- Edmund Kemper
Northern California females serial
killer,
- an interview shown on Court
TV
|
|
|
The New Millennium and Beyond...
The Bush administration seeks Congressional
funding for marital assistance services for
single welfare recipients.
A candidate for California Governor runs on a
singles platform in 2003 and a Video Introductions member is also a candidate.
Full-length, good quality video interviews
are available on Video Introductions
website.
Together dating emerges from bankruptcy as The Right One/Together Dating and is back to the same old high pressure sales tactics, false promises, consumer complaints, high priced memberships and is rewarded with millions of dollars in fast paced annual revenue growth.
"Mickey says his
company's greatest asset is that it
allows customers to 'look before you
buy'. Potential customers can look
through the company's photo albums as
well as a few videos before they decide
whether or not to join... Mickey throws
in a 'reality check' as part of his
service: 'We make people realize that not
everyone is a 9 or a 10 and not everyone
can have a 9 or 10'. Formerly a social
worker...he emphasizes personal growth...
'We have a whole industry about marriage
counseling...I coined the term 'singles
counseling'."
- Alina Larson
The Montclarion
October 2000
|
"Norm Mickey, a
former social worker, is scrupulously
honest in facilitating introductions and
operates his business with the highest of
integrity. If you are serious about
finding a partner, consider Video
Introductions."
- Open Exchange
Jan./Feb. 2001
|
"Norman Mickey of
Video Introductions in Concord says
people feel ashamed to ask for dating
help, even though finding a mate may be
the most important thing we do in life.
'America is all about independence' he
says. 'We think we should be
self-sufficient in every way. If we admit
any deficiency in accomplishing anything,
it makes us feel less self-esteem, less
valued by our peers.'...let's face it,
some people will do almost anything to
avoid rejection, even if it means
spending their lives
alone."
- James O'Brien
Diablo Magazine
February 2002
|
"A
relationship balance is looking at who
you are vs. what you want in a partner.
So many people fail to realize that what
they have to offer is not what they're
asking for in return and this is called a
discrepancy (relationship disparity), and
that's one of the measurements of the
partner compatibility test...we try to
bring a scientific measurement into the
whole process... relationships are so
often emotional - one side of the brain
dictates so much of our decision - and we
fail to consider a rational
counterbalance."
- Norman Mickey
"The Edge -KNEW
Radio"
September 2003
|
During the First Decade of the New Millennium
Deceptive, harmful and illegal practices continue to
surface
in the dating industry
A class action lawsuit is filed against
True.com dating site for automatically renewing subscribers' memberships without their permission and sending e-mails to former subscribers saying that current subscribers (alleged to be fraudulent or non existent) are interested in contacting them, in order to trick them into renewing their subscription.
Yahoo!
Personals admits no guilt but settles a
class action lawsuit for using fake profiles of members on its
site and reimburses 2004-2007 users a monetary award.
Kansas Attorney General wins a settlement against
Great Expectations in which they admit
misrepresenting the number of members, falsely promising
dates with certain kinds of people and falsely claiming they
did background checks on members. Arizona Attorney General files a suit against
Great Expectations for coercive sales practices and deceptive
practices.
Pennsylvania Attorney General
files a civil lawsuit against Great Expectations for
falsely inflating the number of singles available for dating
in its network, misrepresenting the success rate, the costs and
other key elements of its dating services, and its
membership in the Better Business Bureau.
Several California Great Expectations' offices are sued for contract
violations of not honoring 3 day cancellation requests, billing members
for a longer period than California law allows,
misrepresenting the size and composition of the membership,
and
misrepresenting and manipulating the cost of membership.
Under mounting criticism and numerous complaints, eHarmony finally discloses some controversial reasons for
the mysterious and questionable rejection of certain relationship
applicants.
Match.com is sued in June 2009 for deceiving subscribers by showing
profiles of non-subscribers (alleged to be most of the matches), who
cannot acccess or read the subscribers' e-mails or respond to the messages or
"winks" sent to them, thereby defrauding subscribers of their money, time, labor
and emotional investment, and causing personal diappointment, anguish and
suffering related to the emotional vulnerability, anxiety and fear of being
rejected or ignored, inherent in the dating process.
|
A class action lawsuit is
filed against True.com alleging (among other
deceptive practices) that although True.com
advertises that subscribers can sign up free and
contact members free, there is actually a fee
involved to communicate with members. It also
alleges that True.com charges and collects money
from former subscribers after they cancel the
service including false and misleading messages sent to its former subscribers after they have cancelled their accounts, conveying the message that other True.com subscribers
(alleged to be fraudulent and/or non existent) are interested in contacting the
former subscriber. If the former subscriber opens the e-mail message, he/she is automatically reactivated as a subscriber
and charged a fee without their knowledge or
consent. Further allegations include True.com's
refusal to accept cancellation requests.
- Some of the allegations in Wong vs. True
Beginnings dba True.com
June 2007
|
"Severely depressed (one of the
previously undisclosed reasons for rejection by eHarmony). A personalized, individual assessment should be made by a licensed professional to make this diagnosis correctly. Shame on eHarmony for their cursory, flawed assessments! Most people experience depression at some point in their lives. Many wonderful persons who enrich other persons' lives have bouts of depression...if eHarmony is truly in the business of helping singles (who already have a higher incidence of suicide than marrieds) shouldn't they find a better way to communicate with vulnerable, sensitive people who are simply trying to reach out?...Are there other criteria for rejection that eHarmony isn't telling us about?"
- Norman Mickey
"Internet Dating & Hidden Agendas"
- Open Exchange Magazine
July-Sept. 2007
|
"Attorney General Terry Goddard (of Arizona)... accused Great Expectations, of coercive sales practices and deceptive practices. The Attorney General's office alleged that Great Expectations:
- Misrepresented to consumers the overall number of participating members and members in certain age groups.
- Told consumers that two to three marriages occurred among members every month when it had no credible basis for such statements.
- Misrepresented to consumers that it had conducted a criminal background check on all of its members.
- Used high-pressure sales tactics.
- Showed potential new members written profiles and photographs of people they were not available for dating."
-The Arizona Republic
June 2008
|
Some Positive Developments
In 2008 Video Introductions gives members the ability to
morph their photo with other members to see what a future child might look like and also
to see their own age progression photo, plus accompanying
information and advice to enable members to think about, discuss and better understand
important relationship issues related to attraction, having children and aging.
Better
Business Bureau
Honor Roll
member
Video
Introductions
4701-B Clayton Rd. Concord, CA.
94521
Office
and Directions
phone: (925)676-2399
|
All portions of
this website are Copyright 1977-2009 Norman
Mickey. All Rights Reserved.
Elements, graphics, content, textual
representations, video, and audio may NOT be
reproduced, borrowed, or linked without the
expressed written permission of Norman Mickey
and Video Introductions.
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