AT&T coupons are from Carlyle Group company, will share personal info

[Newsjock]

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/01/18/BUG2HGOQEH1.DTL

Bay Area customers of AT&T, the company formerly known as SBC, are receiving a letter in the mail informing them that, because of the recent merger, "there has never been a better time to be our customer."

... This is a nice gesture if you're into money-saving coupons. But be warned: Those coupons can result in a steady stream of marketing pitches.

... The Online SaversGuide is run by a Michigan firm called Entertainment Publications, which requires AT&T customers to register before gaining access to the site.

... -- The Eastern Michigan Better Business Bureau received 107 complaints about Entertainment Publications over the past 12 months. It says the firm "has an unsatisfactory record with the bureau due to unanswered complaints."

... And this: IAC purchased Entertainment Publications for about $370 million in 2003 from a group of investors led by none other than the Carlyle Group.

Carlyle is a high-powered Washington investment firm that in past years has counted among its associates the likes of ex-President George H.W. Bush, former Secretary of State James Baker and the family of Osama bin Laden (prompting a cottage industry of conspiracy theories).

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