Credit for Corruption Discount

What is the Credit for Corruption Discount?

A contest of sorts that commonly occurs at the 100+ Gung-ho Shopping Mall where shoppers can earn substantial discounts and exclusive deals and items by participating in morally dubious acts which are filmed and broadcast throughout the mall on a closed circuit system. This is heavily encouraged by the mall's marketing team and displayed on monitors and posters throughout the mall. 
The acts are edited into a television format and aired as a thirty-minute television show; garnering hundreds of thousands of views from shoppers who watch in snippets as they shop or as they sit down to rest at designated theatre areas to watch larger clips of the show. In between clips, commercials for the various shops in the mall are shown, along with other advertising.
While the contest is extremely popular, it has its detractors with many advocates calling for its cancellation. Noting its encouragement of mean spirited, dangerous, and immoral acts for financial gain. Further stating that the mall is an easily accessible place for youth, and that sending this message to those that young sets a bad precedent. The mall does see the occasional flash mob protest but these are quickly quelled by the on site security. 

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Morally Dubious Acts for Discounts and Grand Prizes

The acts in which the participants are involved vary from filming to filming as do the discounts and prices won; typically the worse the act the higher the discount or grander the prize. Below are some examples of some of these dubious and immoral acts and what can be won by the participant conducting these acts. All participants both willing and unwilling, are compensated for any damages, physical, mental, professional, or personal caused due to the acts committed during the Credit for Corruption Discount*.

Blackmail

Contestants are tasked with gathering compromising information about a fellow shopper or store employee to manipulate them into giving them some form of adequate compensation in return for the pilfered information.
This is must be completed on a set time period or the contestant will fail and win nothing. Bonuses are gifted if multiple people can be blackmailed during the same time period.
Prizes for this act have included an elite personal shopping assistant who travels with the winning shopper around the mall for a full 24-hour period, offering expert advice and exclusive deals wherever the shopper goes. Winners can opt out of this prize for a lump sum cash prize determined by their success.

Staged Accidents

Contestants are tasked with faking an injury or an accident in the hopes that the business in which it occurs is tempted into bribing them so that an official compensation claim can be avoided. If the business does bribe the contestant they win, however, if the business decides to go through the normal route of insurance the contestant loses and doesn't win a thing.
Winners of this task are gifted exclusive prizes and heavy discounts from the store in which they faked their accident, regardless of it the store is a sponsor or not. If the contestant does incur a real injury during the fake out, the mall and the contests coordinators will compensate them. As long as they haven't broken the Terms and Conditions of the contest.

Identity Theft

Participants must steal the personal information, specifically the banking information, of fellow shoppers and use it to make unauthorized purchases until caught or the victim's banking account is frozen. The participant must not be caught before, during, or after the spree, and must remain uncaptured for at least 24 hours after their spree ends.
This prize varies depending on the success of the identity theft, the participant gets to keep all of the pilfered goods and will get a cash prize in the amount of stolen money used to purchase the goods. Enticing participants to spend quickly and spend on big-ticket items.
Competing in this task does not make the participant immune to local theft law.

Fake Returns

Contestants return items they didn’t buy, using false receipts to get store credit. This one is tricky, as the contestant, must first find a suitable item then find a business in which the item would reasonably be sold, and then convince the employee to allow for the return of said item.
All of this is conducted under a strict timeline, and if they fail they gain nothing and may even risk being banned from the store they are trying to trick. Bonuses are given when an item is returned without a receipt whatsoever.
If they win, they gain the value of the item in which they tried to return in cash, and they get a heavy discount at the store in question that failed to notice the con for an entire six months.

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*Terms and Conditions: Credit for Corruption Discount Contest

1. Eligibility: Participation is open to all shoppers, both willing and unwilling. By participating, individuals acknowledge and accept all risks and consequences of the contest.
2. Compensation: All participants will be compensated for damages (physical, mental, professional, or personal) incurred due to acts committed during the contest. Compensation is subject to the terms outlined in this document.
3. Liability: The contest organizers will not be held liable for any damages if:

• The participant fails to provide adequate evidence of the damage.
• The damage is deemed to be self-inflicted or due to the participant's own negligence.
• The participant was found to be in violation of any other mall policies or laws.

4. Dispute Resolution: Any disputes regarding compensation will be resolved through arbitration, and the decision of the arbitrator will be final and binding.
5. Amendments: The organizers reserve the right to amend these terms and conditions at any time without prior notice. It is the participant's responsibility to stay informed of any changes.
By participating in the Credit for Corruption Discount, all individuals agree to these terms and conditions. Participation does not exempt individuals from local law.

Summary

The Credit for Corruption Discount is a contest at the 100+ Gung-ho Shopping Mall where shoppers earn discounts and prizes by performing morally dubious acts, which are filmed and broadcast throughout the mall. The show, edited into a 30-minute format, garners high viewership.
Acts include blackmail, staged accidents, identity theft, and fake returns, with rewards ranging from exclusive deals to cash prizes. Participants, whether willing or unwilling, are compensated for any damages incurred, though terms and conditions often allow organizers to avoid payments. The contest is highly controversial and has caught the ire of protesters several times.

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Why does the mall continue to do it?

The Credit for Corruption Discount is continued, despite its high cost to the mall because it surprisingly brings in far more revenue than its cost ultimately. Simply said it's an advertising scheme that makes the mall’s owners significant revenue, which is why they encourage the contest's continuation. While the mall does take a hit, initially, due to the high production costs associated with the filming of the contest, a portion of the show, the discounts, the prizes, etc. are all funded by sponsorships.
Typically these sponsorships are purchased by the stores and businesses found within the 100+ Gung-ho Shopping Mall. The mall also makes significant revenue from the advertisements they play during commercial breaks on the televised format of the contest. Stores and businesses pay a high price to appear in these commercials as the show is a popular hit amongst mall goers, who will take breaks to stop and watch the show.

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