Kobo VIP Point calculation

ownedbycats · 07-23-2024, 06:06 PM

aka: overthinking things again for no good reason

I'm trying to figure out exactly how it's calculated how many VIP points are needed to redeem a specific book.

I went through my wishlist comparing prices and points. Each of these showed up at least twice:

19.99 - 10800
15.99 - 8400
12.99 - 7200
11.99 - 6400
10.99 - 5200
09.99 - 4800
08.99 - 4400
06.99 - 4000
05.99 - 3200
04.99 - 2800
03.99 - 2400

However, I also noticed there were quite a few outliers, where the number of points was either higher or lower than others. Not to mention that pretty much everything from the Big Five are exempt from the program, but eh.

So - any insights on how this works? is it set by price? by publisher?

Lys · Yesterday, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Not to mention that pretty much everything from the Big Five are exempt from the program, but eh.

Do you have a specific title that you can't get through their program?
Because I never managed to find a book that I can't get with points from my local kobo store, so I wonder if they are applying some geo-restriction on that.

ownedbycats · Yesterday, 01:34 PM

Any of the Star Trek books from Pocket Books (Simon & Schuster). Thankfully they're cheap and I still get VIP points for buying them, I just can't redeem.

Lys · Yesterday, 01:42 PM

It's geo-based, I can use my points to buy them (ie: https://www.kobo.com/it/it/ebook/boogeymen-3 )

JSWolf · Yesterday, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Any of the Star Trek books from Pocket Books (Simon & Schuster). Thankfully they're cheap and I still get VIP points for buying them, I just can't redeem.

Can you redeem your point for Star Trek eBooks if you travel to India?

ownedbycats · Yesterday, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lys

It's geo-based, I can use my points to buy them (ie: https://www.kobo.com/it/it/ebook/boogeymen-3 )

I actually recently noticed in the latest VIP sale that there's 2-3 Trek books that were eligible for the sale and also redeemable, including that one. But most of them aren't.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Can you redeem your point for Star Trek eBooks if you travel to India?

Not sure how I'd do that.

DNSB · Yesterday, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Not sure how I'd do that.

At the bottom of the screen, click on Change Country. Please note that they are not kidding when they state:

Quote:

Please note: if your billing information doesn't match your selected country, you may not be able to complete your purchase.

I've used this once or twice with Paypal and it has worked.

ownedbycats · Yesterday, 08:39 PM

I went in an incognito window (I can still see the points needed for redemption while logged out) and switched to India. It wouldn't even let me check the price, lol.

Tried running it through this but got a Cloudflare error.

Aleron Ives · Yesterday, 09:15 PM

You have to forge the details of your account, e.g. by inputting the fake equivalent of a ZIP code for the target country, and a fake phone number in that country's format, when you change your country. An incognito window won't help, as you must be logged into your account in order to change any of this information. You'll also need to use PayPal, as a credit card from your real country won't work for the transaction. If you've ever paid by credit card, you may need to delete all your billing information, as the billing address will clue Kobo's system into the fact that you're not really in India.

DNSB · Yesterday, 10:12 PM

I actually created a fake account years back when I didn't want to register a Kobo that I re-imaged for a friend. It is tied to my PayPal but no other details. I use the Tor browser and reconnect until I get a country where Kobo does not have a partner.

Oddly, I can't find the Star Trek book you are looking for on www.kobo.com/in/en. The only Dave Galanter book they seem to have is an audio book.

ownedbycats · Today, 02:52 AM

I searched for it on the Canadian site and then switched over to India from there. Is possible that it might not be available in India.

JSWolf · Today, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

I searched for it on the Canadian site and then switched over to India from there. Is possible that it might not be available in India.

I tried a few other countries and it's not there as well. Very odd given that India does have a lot of Star Trek books.

ownedbycats · Today, 05:40 AM

If I switch directly from the Canadian page i see it but not when searching.

Lys · Today, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

I actually recently noticed in the latest VIP sale that there's 2-3 Trek books that were eligible for the sale and also redeemable, including that one. But most of them aren't.

I never check the list they have under the VIP section, but any book I check from the regular searching page has the "redeem with points" option enabled.
I checked several Star Trek books here and they were all eligible (including the one you have without the option on your previous post: https://www.kobo.com/it/it/ebook/cri...onsciousness-1)

Good for me, I guess

07-23-2024, 06:06 PM	#1
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 9,022 Karma: 62040591 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	Kobo VIP Point calculation aka: overthinking things again for no good reason I'm trying to figure out exactly how it's calculated how many VIP points are needed to redeem a specific book. I went through my wishlist comparing prices and points. Each of these showed up at least twice: 19.99 - 10800 15.99 - 8400 12.99 - 7200 11.99 - 6400 10.99 - 5200 09.99 - 4800 08.99 - 4400 06.99 - 4000 05.99 - 3200 04.99 - 2800 03.99 - 2400 However, I also noticed there were quite a few outliers, where the number of points was either higher or lower than others. Not to mention that pretty much everything from the Big Five are exempt from the program, but eh. So - any insights on how this works? is it set by price? by publisher?

Yesterday, 01:42 PM	#4
Lys Zealot Posts: 134 Karma: 721208 Join Date: Dec 2022 Location: Not in an English speaking country Device: (Too many) Kobo(s)	It's geo-based, I can use my points to buy them (ie: https://www.kobo.com/it/it/ebook/boogeymen-3 ) Attached Thumbnails

Yesterday, 08:39 PM	#8
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 9,022 Karma: 62040591 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	I went in an incognito window (I can still see the points needed for redemption while logged out) and switched to India. It wouldn't even let me check the price, lol. Tried running it through this but got a Cloudflare error. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by ownedbycats; Yesterday at 08:45 PM.

Yesterday, 10:12 PM	#10
DNSB Bibliophagist Posts: 37,900 Karma: 150333332 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Vancouver Device: Kobo Sage, Libra Colour, Lenovo M8 FHD, Paperwhite 4, Tolino epos	I actually created a fake account years back when I didn't want to register a Kobo that I re-imaged for a friend. It is tied to my PayPal but no other details. I use the Tor browser and reconnect until I get a country where Kobo does not have a partner. Oddly, I can't find the Star Trek book you are looking for on www.kobo.com/in/en. The only Dave Galanter book they seem to have is an audio book. Attached Thumbnails

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Yesterday, 01:34 PM	#3
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 9,022 Karma: 62040591 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	Any of the Star Trek books from Pocket Books (Simon & Schuster). Thankfully they're cheap and I still get VIP points for buying them, I just can't redeem.

Yesterday, 09:15 PM	#9
Aleron Ives Wizard Posts: 1,251 Karma: 15499948 Join Date: Sep 2022 Device: Kobo Libra 2	You have to forge the details of your account, e.g. by inputting the fake equivalent of a ZIP code for the target country, and a fake phone number in that country's format, when you change your country. An incognito window won't help, as you must be logged into your account in order to change any of this information. You'll also need to use PayPal, as a credit card from your real country won't work for the transaction. If you've ever paid by credit card, you may need to delete all your billing information, as the billing address will clue Kobo's system into the fact that you're not really in India.

Today, 02:52 AM	#11
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 9,022 Karma: 62040591 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	I searched for it on the Canadian site and then switched over to India from there. Is possible that it might not be available in India.

Today, 05:40 AM	#13
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 9,022 Karma: 62040591 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	If I switch directly from the Canadian page i see it but not when searching.

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