Bad Client List, Newspronet

[Rutledge]

I know that I have read about a bad client list on this forum.
Does it exist?

If it does here is one for you; Newspronet, operating out of the Atlanta area. I did probably about ten days for them a few years ago when they were known as Nterprise.

Long story short, they strung me along, paying me late and a little at a time, until they stopped responding to my emails and phone calls. They still owe me between 2-3K and I waited too long to file small claims.

I decided to try one last time to get them to respond so I emailed the president (Susan Krivelow) and GM (Kent J. Krizik).
To my surprise Mr. Krizik wrote me back, stating they were new management, they were becoming aware that this had been an ongoing problem and they were taking care of unpaid invoices. All I had to do was to document the unpaid work and they would pay up.

As you may have guessed, I sent in the documentation and then could never get them to respond to me again.

If anyone is working for them now, I would advise to cut them no slack on payment. If they don't pay on time, file a claim immediately.

[freedom]

Ask NPN whether they want you discussing this with the client. Then take it up with the people you shot for, newspronet's client. Tell them that since you have not been paid, you technically own the rights to your artistic creations and they are or have been using your materials. Then ask them to kindly discuss with npn.

[Skipcam]

This company is located not very far from my home and operate out of a small office in a very nice office park. They seem to still be in business. If you have a copy of the letter from the new management, why not hire one of the many "collection" agencies to go after them. The agencies generally get a large percentage (up to 50% or so) of the total amount involved. But half of something is better than all of nothing! The agencies harrass the hell out of the company until they agree to pay something. I have not used this technique but came very close a few years ago and was in the process of talking to agencies. You can google "collection agencies" or "collect unpaid invoices" etc to come up with a few names. They are all over the country, and when you contact a couple they'll be all over you! Good Luck.

[Baltimore Shooter]

They called me and wanted me to shoot for them for a full day...for $600!!! I politely said NO!. I hope that $2-3k of work isn't at $600/day 'cause that's a lot of full days for that rate.

Here is some contact info for RMS - Receivable Management Solutions, a division of Dunn & Bradstreet:

Rachel Schnecker
Receivable Management Services
899 Eaton Avenue, Bethlehem, PA 18025
tel: 484.242.7499
fax: 1.800.678.3074
Rachel.Schnecker@rmsna.com
http://www.rmsna.com

Don't forget to include all late charges, finance charges, etc. I did that and when it was ll said and done, when I got my check from the deadbeat client, it was close to what the original invoice was.

Good luck.

Warren

[Rutledge]

Thanks for the ideas and referals. I hate to give money to an agency but half is better than none. I also like Freedom's idea of claiming ownership.
I need to be a little careful with what I say publicly because I emailed the posting link to them and now they have contacted me.
I will keep my fingers crossed and update later.

[freedom]

Make sure they understand that if they cause you to bring in a collection agency, their credit rating goes way down.
Don't take a discount from them. If you take a discount, it will be from a collection agency and these guys will loose their credit.
You are doing them a big favor if you do not go to a collection agency.

[joecam147]

NewsProNet is scum and I'm sure there is a lllooonngggg list of freelancers who they have screwed, me included. Don't believe any bullsh*t they tell you because it is just that. If you feel that the time it takes to actually collect from these sh*theads is worth it then go after them full speed ahead, otherwise you have already done some damage by spreading the good word on a very bad client. Normally I wouldn't diss most people in a public forum but these idiots are always the same story, bad, bad, bad. Change careers before anybody else works for these dogs.

[Tv Shooter]

Newspronet has a pretty bad rep here in Atlanta.No one will work for them that is any sort of a successful shooter.
An editor buddy actually worked on staff for them and it took forever for him to get paid.
There was a company here in the area that was well known for slow paying/no pay that when they called me about a shoot I told them"Sorry your reputation is well known-I'll do it but I must receive cash...no check but cash,onsite prior to shooting."
Someone I know ended up taking that shoot on a 30 day invoice....of which he never got paid on.
Newspronet usually has a booth at RTNDA...maybe all the freelancers should walk by and ask when Ms Krivlow and Mr Krivek when our buddy Rutledge is going to get paid.
Imagine when they are talking with a client someone walking up and saying"hey aren't you the company that stiffs freelancers?"

[Nino]

My policy is that if I don’t know the client is COD. I don’t get most of the jobs when I ask for money upfront or at the end of the gig, and that’s just fine with me. There are some occasional clients that come recommended by my good accounts and I use regular billing for those but I still have doubts about getting paid. For these instances I add this printed message right in the middle of the invoice, I have no idea of how is effecting the payment but I always get paid.

“Please be aware that under the US Copyrights laws any image created by a hired non-employee (freelance) photographer remains an intellectual property of the maker (Nino Giannotti) and any use of such material without a “Work For hire” agreement transferring the unconditional rights for the use of such material to the client listed on this invoice is forbidden and a serious violation of copyrights laws. For your convenience and protection the endorsement on the back of the check as a full payment for this invoice will constitute a full unconditional release and transfer of these rights.”

I had my lawyer check this out and even thou he is not very familiar with copyright laws he told me that the message has muscles.

[Sean-1966]

Thanks for that leagalese Nino. I hope you don't mind if I cope it for future agreements?

[Rutledge]

Here is the latest with Newspronet; After posting their bad client status here, I emailed the link to the Krivelow and Krizik. When Ms. Krivelow got the link she accidentally sent an inter-office response to me and then sent me a full email but taking no responsibility. She referred me to a woman named Susan Shoer (anybody know her?) stating that her company sublet office space from their's and they were the ones responsible. Shoer has a company called icecaterers.com, I talked to her and she basically said Nterprise is out of business and the shoots were probably for Newspronet anyway.
I have traded a few more emails with Krivelow and she gets more slippery every time. Finally telling me this "NewsProNet Interactive is an insolvent company and as such has no employees.One of the assets acquired by the senior secured lender when it called its loan was the name NewsProNet, but the companies are not the same."
Bottom line here is that Nterprise and Newpronet are (were) different entities but they shared office space and office support personnel. A guy named Mark Mayo was the accounts person who was in charge of not paying and I know they shared his services. Whatever their legal status they were cut from the same cloth and deserve a big red asterisk by their name for those doing business with them.
Thanks to everyone here for the support and information.
Rutledge (that's a rut next to a ledge)

[Sean-1966]

They shared office space and personnel? Sounds like BS to me. Companies like to do this. They'll set up another company run it out of the same place, it's basically the same company but under another umbrella. I'd keep after them.