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  • 2000-04-30 (xsd:date)
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  • Man Gets Millions of Air Travel Miles from Pudding Cups (en)
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  • David Phillips of Davis, California, really did rack up millions of frequent-flyer airline miles as described in a widely-circulated e-mail. And yes, he really did purchase 12,150 cups of Healthy Choice chocolate pudding, then donated them to the Salvation Army and two local food banks, earning himself an additional tax deduction for the whole scheme: In May 1999 David spotted the promotion that was to bring him fame as the pudding guy. Consumers could buy 10 Healthy Choice products and get 500 frequent flyer miles from the airline of their choice — 1,000 miles if purchased by June 1. As described above, he did the math, and it was good. The rest is now history. Rarely does a straight news story pick up the sort of following this one did. By mid-February 2000, the text of a January 2000 news article about Phillips' escapade was spreading across the Internet, jumping from one inbox to the next. Society admires the 'clever fellow' who manages by dint of his acuity to get something for nothing (or at least something of great value for very little), and that was the case here. Since his story became public, Phillips has received a virtual ton of e-mail congratulating him on his scheme. Though most of this story's appeal comes from the image of the little guy screwing a big corporation, oddly enough, that's not what happened here. In January 2000, American Airlines awarded Phillips the last of 1.25 million free miles, with the balance coming from Northwest Airlines, Delta and United. Because the airlines sell the frequent-flyer miles to Healthy Choice for the promotion for about two cents a mile, they aren't out a thing. Healthy Choice likely also made on the deal, because the value of the publicity surrounding Phillips' pudding run probably exceeds the actual dollar cost incurred by the company for purchasing those miles. The Wall Street Journal quoted an official of Healthy Choice as saying the frequent-flier offer met and exceeded expectations, although the company's spokeswoman wouldn't discuss the promotion's sales figures or data about participants. Kudos to Healthy Choice for handling as professionally as it did what must have seemed a very strange situation. According to Phillips' oft-repeated account, one day the stacks of 500-free-miles certificates just began arriving — no fanfare, and certainly no attempts on the part of the company to back away from the promotion. Those who still remain a tad skeptical about all of this are certainly excused; it's an improbable story, after all. A visit to the link in the additional information section below should settle any remaining doubts. To be found there is Phillips' account of the affair as well as a supporting photo record of the stacks of pudding and certificates received. The pudding miles have since been used up, but not before David Phillips, his wife, and their daughters undertook some enjoyable trips with the rewards of his scheme: Sightings: The guy takes advantage of pudding promotion to earn airline miles for life concept features in the plot of the 2002 Adam Sandler film Punch-Drunk Love. (en)
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