In the ad, a corporate rumor-squasher (read: PR spokesbot) responds to a rumor-mongrel's (read: pudgy gadget blogger) request for comment about a tip he got about a PS3 price-drop. "You can't believe everything you read on the Internet. Otherwise I'd be a Nigerian millionaire by now."
In response to this false, defamatory and confidential claim, Nigeria demanded an immediate recant. "Nigeria also demands an unconditional apology from Sony Corporation for this deliberate negative campaign against the country's image and reputation," said a spokesman for the Nigerian government.
Sony Corporation portrayed Nigeria as home of fraud [Vanguard NR via The Raw Feed]
]]>Go shit in your shoe.
Love,
Sony.
]]>Anyone who knows about Nigerian Scams should read more about all variations and tell 10 people who are still clueless. Then, ask each to tell 3 friends, and ask them to tell 2 friends, recursively - the saddest part being that these scammers only operate because they keep finding new prey.
And by now, this means some of the most vulnerable folks around, not just the greedy.
As for Nigerian as a hole, what can I say, but that this was not a typo?
]]>But I kinda get your point, I haven't asked my heavily German neighbor upstairs what she thinks of the holocaust. I kinda got the idea when she picked fights with the Jews and the minorities in the neighborhood...
One could also ask the Nigerian if they have doorbell scammers there that walk door to door stealing identities, and offer moral support I guess...
]]>It has come to our attention that you have been offended by the Sony ad.
Allow us to provide restitution. Please send us your bank account and transit numbers and we will send you a sum of money to cover the error.
]]>@CumaeanSibyl: Excellent factual point.
]]>@MrEvil: Nigerian Police?
Do they exist and how much in bribes do they take???
]]>@Kimaroo - 20% More Kitty Added!: You have to read the comments to the Nigerian news paper article. Those alone are priceless...
]]>But their most well-known export IS 419 scams. If they want to change that impression, they need to work on shutting down the scammers, not on going after jokes about them.
]]>I don't care how many 419 scammers are Nigerian. It's still in poor taste.
]]>It seemed like a great hotel with really superb security. They wanted me to provide them with my Social Security Number, a photo of my drivers license, my checking and savings account numbers and several of my credit card numbers. When I asked them why they needed all of that I was told so they could make sure it was really me who was coming to the hotel and not some undesirable. Made sense to me. ;)
]]>@tundey: Yes, con artists prey on greed...that's how those things work. Music videos mocking them after the fact seem a bit much however. Do I actually expect (or want) an apology from Nigeria? No. I'm merely pointing out that their country is so notorious for this activity that its own citizens make hit songs glorifying it. So Sony using them as a punchline...well, that's kind of Nigeria's fault. Arrest some people for ther 419 scams and I'll have a greater level empathy for their outrage.
Isn't Nigeria asking the "few people" at Sony exactly what you're chastising me for (jokingly) asking for? Sony is "just a handful of people". They don't speak for all of America but Nigeria wants an apology.
]]>Seriously, read up on the guy (I think highlighted here a while ago) who got 11 consecutive RRoDs.
]]>yea I am waiting for my millions transferred to me as well. :D
]]>@kenboy: Touche, my good sir.
]]>We apologize to say we must correct an misrepresentation, pointed out to us by the Nigerian government, that we gave in our recent ad regarding our price drop on the PS3. We would like to rectify this situation. We did not mean to insinuate that you cannot believe anything you read on the internet because you can actually get the PS3 for $299. That is all.
]]>It would be worthy of an apology if it wasn't so true. Walking a mile to be offended by the truth here
]]>Well played Sony... Well played.
]]>Tell ya what, I will stop talking bad about you when you reinstate public hangings for spamming.
]]>@Tvhargon: No publicity is bad publicity.
]]>I saw the commercial yesterday on TV with the Nigeria millionaire part and I also saw the other one with the WWI refence. I think the Nigeria one was on Canadian TV but I forget.
]]>The commercial has already been changed. The line was changed to:
"You can't believe everything you read on the internet. That's how World War I started." (cut to blogger giving a confused look at the end of the line.)
]]>I assume the letter was like this:
Agabi and Associates.
Solicitors and Advocates.
5th floor, Unity House.
Lagos.
Dear Sony,
I am Mr. paul agabi, a Lawyer by profession. I am the personal attorney to Mr. Charles Exavier , a national of your country, who is the embassador for the nation of Nigeria, herein after shall be referred to as my client.
On the 9th of September 2009, my client stumbled across your Playstation 3 ad on youtube featuring Nigeria in a negative way. Because of this, he suffered a brain aneurysm, and has since passed on.
Since then he has made several enquiries to your company to locate those responsible for offending my clients country. This has proved unsuccessful. I came to know about you through an enquiry I was making in the internet, and I found out you shared the title of CEO, which is why I have decided to contact you, in order to assist in repatriating the money and property left behind by my client before they get confiscated or declared unserviceable by the bank.
Particularly, in a local commercial bank here where the deceased had an account valued at about US$ 15.5 Million Dollars, has issued me a notice to provide the next of kin or have the account confisticated within the next ten official working days.
Since i have been unsuccessful in locating anyone else for over 2 days now I seek your consent to present you as the next of kin of the deceased since you have the title of CEO so that the proceeds of this account valued at US$15.5 Million Dollars can be paid to you and then you and me can share the money, on the ratio of 50% for me, and 50% for you.
I have all necessary legal documents that can be used to back up any claim we may make. All I require is your honest co-operation to enable us see this business through. I guarantee that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law. I will also require you to make a very formal apology to our Nation, by providing me with your bank account information, as well as personal information such as your D.O.B, home address, and all credit card numbers (including corporate cards).
Please get in touch with me by email and send to me your telephone and fax numbers to enable us discuss further about the details of this transaction.
Best regards, Mr. paul agabi.
]]>@RecordStoreToughGuy_DragonsAreForSlayingNotPlaying: Classic Heathers reference!! Kudos!
]]>And I never heard the original version in Chicago, only the one with the WWI tag line.
]]>I mean it's not as though the ad specifically said something like "I'd be a millionaire due to all those scam emails I get from Nigera". It was a rather subtle reference - and they got it. Exactly.
I'm just sorry Sony caved and revised the ad. If I were Sony, I'd grab this opportunity and run with it. Heck, I'd use it as a slogan! "PS3 - it's not a Nigerian millionaire"
]]>I am the brother to the proud prince Numumbu and after the recent PS3 ad caused a civil war in my country, my family was exiled to the island of Mufasa. My father's fortune was frozen in the bank. I am willing to share the fortune with someone in the United States if only you will please enclose $50,000 for a transfer fee, I will share 20% of the 79 million dollar fortune with you. Please Telex your identification papers and and bank account numbers so I may process the transaction.
Sincerely,
I. Amma Scamma
Island of Mufasa
Republic of Nigeria
The sad thing is that I can almost imagine why you would have gone there. The idea is on the tip of my tongue, but it's almost like it's too stupid a notion to bother coalescing into a complete thought. Maybe you just wanted to assert your sense of moral superiority over the rest of the internet? I dunno...
]]>Truth hurts
]]>Is Nigeria even a significant source of revenue for... anybody but Nigeria? (Serious question here, not sarcasm)
]]>I was Prince Abubamat the Third Hair of my Country Nigeria and I am very misgivings on reference with your deslanderous offensives which have been honorably strewn at my persons. I humbly and formerly beseech the sendings of $450US at which timings I will send you in response not only forgiveness of all insults but too your winnings of foreign debt instrument speculations for tax purposes.
Yours Grandiosly,
Prince Abumamat
]]>Technically, I did get my PS3 for around $300 because it came with a free remote, Blu-Ray movie, and game.
]]>Confidential? I can see their point (but may not agree with it) with false and defamatory (after all, can we b sure that the scammers are from Nigeria? But at the same time, he doesn't blame Nigeria for originating it, but says he would be a Nigerian millionaire). But how the f is this confidential?
]]>Dear Nigeria,
STFU and send me my $200,000 in exchange for the $10K I sent you!
I'm waiting.
]]>Also, no it isn't. To adapt your poor analogy, It's more like Germany asking that Mitsubishi apologize for saying that German millionaires are genocidal murderers.
]]>Shoot...now Nigeria's government is going to demand I apologize for this comment.
Maybe I will after they compensate me for my time reading their citizen's bogus emails. I charge competitive rates of $150 per second, payable via Western Union.
]]>Second, when the time comes for a country to apologize for the music of a few individuals in that country, the United States should be the first to apologize.
]]>"You can't believe everything you hear/read on the internet, that's how World War I got started."
This article now needs an "UPDATE" in it somewhere. You are welcome Consumerist.
]]>Maybe if the goverment employees stoped watching tv they could bust some of these scam artists that are giving their country such a bad neme.
]]>@Triterion: actually nobody does. those are inflated numbers.
]]>@Cyberxion101: That's okay. We allowed to be late to the game as long as it stays in our little world alone.
]]>@Chumas: And someone over at Kotaku beat us all to it. Like a week ago.
]]>/Checks spam folder and notes the 36 messages scam messages originating from Nigeria...
Yup, Nigeria is fucked.
]]>Sorry Nigeria.
]]>We at Sony apologize for our insensitive portrayal of your country as a hive of scam artists. We have the utmost respect for the great country of Nigeria and its people. In recompense, we would like to give you $1,000,000 as our way of saying sorry. All we will need from you is a number for a checking account in which to deposit the funds and a processing fee of $5000 (this will be added to the deposit of $1,000,000 to reimburse you.) Once again, we humbly apologize.
Yours,
President of Sony
]]>I hadn't laughed so hard at an article on the Consumerist in a while. Sure.. I laugh at the comments.. but the actual articles? Not usually.
I just find this really really funny and completely ridiculous.
]]>Sure thing...as soon as they apologize for this:
They are a source for scams. I saw that commercial on TV and although the PS3 is garbage the nigeria comment was the only good thing in the commercial.
]]>