In June of 2024, IAEJ brought the good news that, by an agreement with ClipMyHorse (now incorporation former FEI-tv), members were given the possibility to sign up for free CMH subscriptions, a welcome bonus of the membership.
We are delighted that CMH still recognizes the critically important role that equestrian media plays in promoting equestrian sport and is willing to support our members in their work. From their email two years ago: “ClipMyHorse.TV’s mission to make the world of equestrian sports as visible and accessible as possible. We believe that opening our platform to key media stakeholders is in service of this mission and will help promote our sport globally.”
Previously, the FEI has generously offered reduced-rate subscriptions to the IAEJ, which were then offered to members free of charge on a first-come-first-serve basis. The arrangement has been made directly with CMH and not only eliminates all costs to the IAEJ but also extends the offer to all members, and we are very grateful for the continuing support from CMH.
Remember, to keep your name on our membership list, pay your dues.
Administration of active members
The procedure and communication between IAEJ and CMH have been done on a person-to-person basis and are in no way automated. It is rudimentary. IAEJ provides membership lists of active paying members to CMH. Each member then has to claim their own subscription, as the agreement is between CMH and the member personally, exactly as with any other customer to CMH, with the difference that a yearly subscription is granted for free.
The means for a subscription is an email address to make the connection between a member name and a claim for a subscription. The address in question is the one stated with membership in the IAEJ member list. This is not an automated process; it is up to every member with professional use of Clipmyhorse to claim a free subscription. This has to be done every year.
The only thing IAEJ communicates with Clipmyhorse is the active member lists (members with dues up to date) – it is then up to each member to contact support@clipmyhorse.de to claim their free subscription, all done by each member.
We do not put in anyone’s credit card information in or order subscriptions for any member. That is all done by each member. Even when you sign up for a free membership with CMH, the process involves a credit card, and how each member handles that is not in our control. Once you sign up, the contract between you and Clipmyhorse is established, and all the same rules apply, for example, a running subscription by the member and all other CMH clients.
IAEJ has no records anywhere about members’ credit cards and/or financial information, as we have chosen to use payment methods that keep that information separate from us to protect from an eventual data breach.
Automatic renewal of subscriptions
IAEJ has been contacted by members who have been charged with a yearly subscription fee as the free year for an active membership runs out. This is unfortunate, but it is within the terms of what each member signed up for when establishing an account with CMH. As an active IAEJ member with dues paid, you are due for another free year. However, an eventual refund and a prolongation of the subscription period can only be corrected by CMH, as the terms for the subscription were and are one free year at a time, depending on membership status.
How to avoid similar situations – save yourself some trouble
To a more pressing subject, how to avoid being charged on your credit card for an automatically prolonged subscription (if you need and use the valuable free subscription frequently in your work). We are aware that the process is far from perfect, but we believe it is of value for our members to have a free subscription. Even though it takes effort and in some cases quite a bit of trouble. It is still easier and more valuable than the limited vouchers that used to be issued for FEI-tv and only gave a minor discount on the subscription fee.
Our best practical advice to avoid this unpleasant surprise is to do as one should do with all subscriptions with an automated renewal clause linked to one’s credit card, and most of us have quite a few.
Put a reminder in your calendar a few days before the end of the subscription period. You find the information when you log onto Clipmyhorse and go to your profile page under the page for subscription. There you find the relevant dates and your card information. To keep the free service, there must be a card linked to the account; there is no way going around this.
Manually cancel your subscription; it will continue to run until the period has passed. Your account will remain as it is, but without access after the given date.
Email support@clipmyhorse.de to renew your subscription as a paying member of IAEJ. Allow for some time before your account is reactivated. Log in and try every other day to check if it is on again (CMH typically does not confirm by email, rather just switches it on). If you have no account after 4-5 business days, email again.
And, have some patience and understanding for the support staff at CMH, most of them are probably unaware of the agreement, and try their best.
The International Alliance of Equestrian Journalists (IAEJ) was created over 50 years ago to promote and maintain contacts among equestrian journalists of all nations and act as a conduit to the International Equestrian Federation (FEI). The relationship of cooperation that the IAEJ now enjoys with the FEI and Organizing Committees the world over is the result of decades of interaction.