SMS.ac / FanBox
SMS.ac Inc. is a mobile data and Internet communications company based in San Diego, California. The company provides web and mobile distribution and billing to people buying and selling digital content (video, music, and applications) through (SMS) mobile billing. SMS.ac's website integrates its mobile billing technology with social networking services like photos, videos, music, and comments.[1] SMS.ac has over 50 million registered users in more than 180 countries, which makes it the largest community of registered mobile phone users in the world.
Public Comments about the company:
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I have an interview tomorrow
Grades
- NA
- Overall
- NA
- Location
- NA
- Job Tasks
- NA
- Social Environment
- NA
- Management
- NA
- Pay/Raises
I have an interview with Josh Levy tomorrow at FanBox - and I am very disturbed reading all these reviews. I am NOT in a position to not be paid for my work. I have a masters degree from Boston University that I am paying off among a million other bills. I just moved cross country and have seen this job posted once a month, which makes me suspicious. Any more thoughts from anyone about this company?
They will RIP YOU OFF without a doubt!
Grades
- F
- Overall
- F
- Location
- F
- Job Tasks
- C
- Social Environment
- F
- Management
- F
- Pay/Raises
This is the REAL TRUTH: They will RIP YOU OFF!!! Every few months, they hire a big group of new staff. They will give you a contract where they pay you peanuts ($1,500 a month for about 60 hours of work a week) This is for the first 3 months, but should you survive the first three months, they tell you a nice salary is waiting for you afterwards. That "nice salary" (mine was over 50k a year), is a made up, fictional number. You will never see that money, don't even hope. Just as you get close to completing your first three months you will be flushed out and let go, the management will tell you how poorly the company is doing, and you won't be paid for your last few weeks there. TRUST me you don't want to experience what it's like to find out you just busted your ass in this sweatshop, and won't be payed for the last several weeks, ever. I experienced what it's like to just LOOSE 3 weeks of my life to them, and it's not a good feeling. They never payed me, and now they are advertising on Craigslist for my position again. They let me go along with about 30 others just before many of us were about to hit 3 months. They do this over and over again constantly. Don't be a fool, find a real job in a legit company. Furthermore, the management is all about brainwashing you, if you're desperate enough to take the job, don't believe a word any of them say. It's all bull shit to encourage you to work your ass off for them, for free. This sweat shop needs to be shut down! DO not sign an arbitration agreement or you can't take them to court to sue for your rightfully due wages. Do not think the Department of Labor will help you either. They haven't help any of the many people who have filed with them collect anything! DO NOT WORK AT FANBOX!!!!
Start-Ups
Grades
- A+
- Overall
- A+
- Location
- A+
- Job Tasks
- A+
- Social Environment
- A+
- Management
- C
- Pay/Raises
Most people have never worked at a start-up. The last poster said there are "ups and downs". Yes, that is what happens at start-ups. If you want stability, apply to the US military or the nursing industry. If you don't want ups and downs (I dont have an answer for that one -- that is called life!)
If you are looking at any start-up, consider the following. This article sums it up pefectly.
http://www.theladders.com/career-advice/Pros-Cons-Joining-Startup
PS -- No companies are going public now. Worst recession in 70 years.
Why is it still a start up? How many years can a company be in existence and still refer to themselves as a start up? I'd think that after 7 or 8 years in business, more people would question the whole start up model. Actually, the real question should be: why aren't you past the start up phase? I know, Google and Yahoo took years before they became a huge success but I don't think they clung to the start up title as if it were some type of hip and cool term. I think they quickly decided to move beyond it and become a force to deal with and not something stuck in start up mode. I'd like the person who wrote the post (obvious management at smsac/fanbox) to answer my questions please. i cant wait to see the response.
The fact that one would even think that this is a start-up is laughable. I knew right away that something was fishy.... I asked once what bank was underwriting the supposed IPO...... no answer .... even the murkiness that existed about the finances leaves one to question whether or not they could even pass SOX, very unlikely (sarbannes-oxley, look it up). Many things are involved in going public, the fact that they said they were going public within six months every morning meeting only fueled the larger majority of employees to work over time. The reality is that every six months an old batch of employees was let go while a new crop was brought in. The old guard left at the edge of their seats believing that they still have a chance to strike at internet gold would eventually be released with nothing. Its modern day tech sweatshop composed of the elaborate get rich stories that we've read and heard about from the wall st. journal, and cnbc. You don't use the site, some poor guy that doesn't understand the vague language of an intricate premium sms plan in a third world country uses the site. Thats how you get paid if you work there. Look it up at alexa.com see if it is even a blip on the scale of internet use that they tell you it is, see if even one percent of the overall internet users have even clicked on the site once maybe thats how they calculate the 15 million users that don't use the site.
Obviously written by someone who wants to sell people on the jobs there.
Ken, quit making fake posts like you're not the VP of HR. Obviously all the postings out there that say anything remotely positive about this shit hole are written by Ken Smith, who will resort to anything to scam people into selling their souls by working for this dump.
The Ups and Downs
Grades
- F
- Overall
- B
- Location
- C
- Job Tasks
- C
- Social Environment
- D
- Management
- F
- Pay/Raises
I am very surprised with some of the recent reviews I have been reading about working for this company. The postings of these positive reviews coincides with a recent increase in job postings by SMS.ac/Fanbox/MobileGuard on Craigslist and college websites. The contact for these postings is "Breeann Dector" at bdector@corp.fanbox.com. This person is most likely a new recruiter who joined the company in the past 9 months because there was no one by this name working there when I was employed there.
I was a recruiter and also an account manager in the business development department. For those who have joined the company recently - I hope things continue to go well. But please be very careful because this company has been named in several claims with the Department of Labor Standards Enforcement. Why? Because in August of 2008, the company stopped paying its employees.
The energy and atmosphere of the company goes through a cycle of ups and downs. The people who work there are very committed and dedicated to their projects, which means that they usually stay for longer than they should. If you are enjoying yourself, I'm glad that it is a good time right now. But if you have been told that the company will go public in about a year - please know that this is what employees as well as interviewing candidates were told in March of 2008. Instead, employees went without pay, and our lunches and dinners went from take-out and food cooked by a Columbian manager to ham/cheese sandwiches and wraps.
Please be very careful if you interview with this company and if you accept an offer.
Ham and cheese sounds wonderful compared to what they served when I was there! We had rice and eggs twice a day. Other days, it was canned Chef Boyardee dumped into a foil tray and served cold. I think I just threw up into my mouth a little bit.
fanbox current
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- NA
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I took job at fanbox month ago and in engineer training time. Learning C# and ASP.net which I did not learn in asu. Happy so far here. Hopefully work on blogs project next month.
This company has an overall F rating, so don't trust these positive ratings; they are coming from the scammers working at the company who are trying to cheat you into working there for free.
May god save your soul (Posted by Engineer, in San Diego, CA, USA on June 18, 2009) because your screwed.
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I am the graphic designer who was just there and got let go in October with no pay. If you'd like to find me just search linked in, you shouldn't have too much trouble. I will be happy to speak with you.
Do not take this job, unless you want to experience what it's like to work very hard only to find out that there is no paycheck on pay day.
If you have bills don't take the position.
Josh Levy is full of shit, dont waste your time. I am a former employee and everything above is true. The management is a bunch of crooks and they make you work 14+ hours daily for very little pay. For all who read this, find a job elsewhere cause Fanbox will make your life a living HELL!
Josh Levy is either a total idiot and completely brainwashed, or a total crook and a really great actor/sleazy salesman.
They spend their days cooking up ways to cheat and scam new employees. Don't be fooled into working there. You'll be treated like dog crap and will never see a dime of the money they owe you!
You will end up pissed and cheated out of your salary, just like the people in this news story: http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/story/Former-Employees-Frustrated-with-Downtown-based/gCLA87OFxE-53GTQ8OoEGA.cspx