Consider This When Using A TouchTunes Jukebox

Last night we ventured out to a bar who's name I will keep out of this.  The music being played on the TouchTunes jukebox was not quite to the liking of most in our group so I pulled out my phone, transferred some money to the app, and selected some music.

After about four songs, my first selection came on and within a minute of it playing, the bartender skipped it.  My next song was promptly skipped, then the next, and so on.

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The bar was packed and we decided part on the music being skipped to head over to another place, so I didn't bother complaining.  I did promptly send TouchTunes an email regarding the matter.  Interestingly enough, on their app in the help section, there isn't really an option for requesting a refund as you can see in the screenshot below.  Also, further digging into the help section wasn't really helpful.

I eventually reached a point where I could enter a chat with TouchTunes but it was automated responses until it stated a representative would get back to me.  I went a step farther and directly contacted them on their website, which also was setup poorly and I really don't expect a reply.  Even my emailed receipt for purchasing credits was a joke, full of broken images and links to reach out for support.

It might seem petty to want my $12.00 and some change back, but I paid for a service and the product was not delivered.  I went a step farther today and started reading the actual TouchTunes Terms of use that you agree to when using the app.  You can read it all yourself but I'll also share that it does state: "YOU SHOULD BE AWARE THAT WE DO NOT OFFER REFUNDS FOR PAY SERVICES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, INCLUDING IF A SONG THAT YOU REQUESTED FAILS TO PLAY OR IF CREDITS THAT YOU TRANSFER TO A JUKEBOX ARE LOST OR EXPIRE."  

Apparently many years back there was actually a class action lawsuit against TouchTunes for my exact scenario.  After that, they updated their terms to what they are now.

With all of that being said, I will add that I have probably dropped several hundreds of dollars on playing music in bars via their app over the years and generally have not had any issues.  Despite all of the good experiences and me only being out 12ish bucks, and despite their terms that hardly anyone reads, I still want my money back.  I'll report back with an update if I hear back from them when the standard business workweek starts.  Until then, if you're in a packed bar with a crappy bartender that has poor musical taste, use caution when spending money on TouchTunes.