In the Spring of 2008, NGS went looking for a new online registration system to replace the system from active.com that we had been using since 2003. While the active.com system served us well for many years, that system was fundamentally limited to simply taking registrations from families, which we would then download to our own database (which runs in Microsoft Access solely on the PC of the NGS Registrar). We were seeking a system which would enable us to allow each age group coordinator to directly access registrations in their program and perform functions like forming teams online, without the "old fashioned" process of emailing spreadsheets back and forth.
To this end, based on its technical merits, we selected a registration system from Count Me In, Inc. (countmein.com or CMI), located in Bellevue, Washington. As part of the selection process, we also contacted several reference accounts -- other soccer clubs -- that CMI had provided us with. These clubs gave us generally positive reviews of CMIs system, and a few had been using CMI for a couple of years.
NGS used CMI for online registration for the Fall 2008 season (registrations commenced in May 2008). The system did provide the benefits we expected -- age group coordinators had direct access to online registrations as they arrived. There were also a few additional benefits -- it was no longer necessary to register all children at the same time for a family to get the sibling discount, scholarship recipients could register online, and we could take "waitlist" registrations -- without having to collect a payment up-front, for those programs that reached their capacity.
We also began taking registrations for the Spring 2009 in November. In early December, we noticed that CMI had not remitted us any funds yet from these Spring 2009 registrations, and was in fact late in remitting us some payments from some late Fall 2008 registrations. In researching this matter, we found that there were other youth sports clubs who had not received their funds from CMI. One club -- The Montclair United Soccer Club of New Jersey, has already filed suit against CMI. Montclair United was in fact one of the clubs that CMI had provided to us as a reference.
In light of this, as of December 5, NGS immediately ceased accepting credit card payments through CMI, while we further investigated the situation. As of, Tuesday, December 16, we have gone back to our old registration provider, active.com, for the remainder of the Spring 2009 registrations.
We are suggesting that those families who registered, and paid using a credit card, for a Newton Girls Soccer program via CMI for a Spring or Winter 2009 program, contact their credit card company and request reimbursement of those charges. Those families should have received a notification email from NGS.
Apparently, there are many other CMI customers who have not been receiving their funds lately, as the links below demonstrate:
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/12/montclair_and_teaneck_sports_l_1.html
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1228973883139980.xml&coll=1
http://www.northjersey.com/news/crimeandcourts/35947314.html
http://www.techflash.com/mobile/view_article/?id=35772399&pln=3
http://www.techflash.com/venture/35837719.html
http://www.nwcn.com/business/stories/NW_121208WAB_count_me_in_KS.58898f09.html
http://www.individual.com/story.php?story=93096648
http://www.baristanet.com/2008/11/montclair_united_soccer_lawsui.php
http://www.adn.com/front/story/616620.html
http://actionalameda.org/actionalamedanewsblog/2008/12/04/court-documents-show-aef-let-donation-collections-lanquish/
http://www.kirotv.com/education/18240719/detail.html#-
http://sfluxe.com/2008/12/09/little-leaguers-claim-tech-ceo-stole-sports-club-cash-terry-drayton/
http://valleywag.com/5115053/little-league-thief-rewarded-with-magazine-cover
http://www.seattlebusinessmonthly.com/
http://valleywag.com/5105625/little-leaguers-claim-tech-ceo-stole-sports+club-cash
http://www.techflash.com/Count_Me_In_CEO_Terry_Drayton_featured_on_cover_of_local_mag_editor_36461804.html
http://sammamishreview.com/2008/12/16/company-owes-thousands-to-youth-sports-leagues
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008579311_countmein01m.html?syndication=rss
-- "... $5 million to sports organizations across the country .."
http://www.techflash.com/venture/Count_Me_In_CEO_apologizes_takes_blame_for_lack_of_financial_oversight36902949.html
http://www.justicenewsflash.com/2009/01/07/count-corp-sued-stealing-millions-hundreds-leagues_20090107553.html
http://www.acorn-online.com/joomla15/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16939:pta-attorney-general-seek-missing-money&catid=10:greenwich-local&Itemid=68
http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=24687793
http://www.myrecordjournal.com/site/tab1.cfm?newsid=20232764
http://www.ct.gov/ag/cwp/view.asp?Q=430956&A=2795
-- this is an official posting by the Attorney General of Connecticut
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS17951+03-Jan-2009+PRN20090103
http://www.streetinsider.com/Press+Releases/Statement+of+Count+Me+In+Corporation+Regarding+Money+Owed+to+Clients/4270574.html
http://www.examiner.com/x-1997-SF-Financial-Fraud-Examiner~y2009m2d3-Count-Me-In-counted-out-in-bankruptcy-that-burns-Little-Leagues-parents
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/7_on_your_side&id=6744794
http://news.findlaw.com/prnewswire/20090128/28jan20091804.html
If any member of the NGS community has further questions about our issues
with CMI, please email us.