King of Diamonds

KRISPY KREME

After that crushing defeat, we slunk down to Krispy Kreme in South San Francisco, where an intrepid server Keith came the closest to a positive ID on the card.

“I’ve seen a Passport card before, but not this one,” he told us, pointing out the small logo in the lower right-hand corner that read “Passport Lifestyle.” Then, smirking at the Gamertag on the card, he asked, “Are you General Duckworth?”

I told him that, indeed, I was, and as such I demanded to know what my discount would be. Keith cupped his chin thoughtfully: “I believe that if you buy a dozen doughnuts, you get another dozen glazed doughnuts for free.”

PRECIOUS STONES

It wasn’t a bad way to end the day — a minor success and a mouthful of doughnuts. It was disappointing, however, that Microsoft seems to have missed an opportunity to offer gamers and Xbox fans something more than a plastic equivalent to those charity coupon books that act as ballast in the glove compartment. But I did learn that it pays to print out discount offers from the website and take them along with you, even if you’re not specifically instructed to do so.

And I also learned that, should I ever have my Xbox Live Diamond Card privileges revoked, I can always fall back to the Internet. Out of curiosity, when I got home from my adventures, I typed “Krispy Kreme coupon” into Google. I immediately found a printable coupon, redeemable by anyone: Buy one dozen doughnuts, get one dozen glazed free.

EPILOGUE

After our shopping expedition, we contacted Diamond program sponsor Passport Unlimited for more info. Steve Esau, Passport’s VP of Sales, handled our follow-up questions.

OXM: Our writer found that most retailers did not know about the Xbox Live Diamond Card. How are retailers usually educated about the program?
SE: It's important to reference the Xbox Live Diamond web site for detail on how each participating business is prepared to honor their discount or offer. In some cases, offers are available only at the online stores of some national retailers. The company that produces the Xbox Live Diamond Program has a network of businesses who offer discounts to their members, who are trained to recognize their logo, which appears on the Xbox Live Diamond Card in the lower right-hand corner.

OXM: Why does the card now require a $7 fee when it used to be free to sign up?
SE: The Diamond Card was initially offered to 12-month Xbox Live subscribers as a loyalty program. In March 2008, the program was opened to the entire Xbox community and the subscription requirement was removed. The $6.95 fee covers the fulfillment of a membership card to each member.  

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