# I'm confused, is "0.02¢" two cents or point zero two cents? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 4, 2012, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784 "2012-04-04T06:28:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/1 "2012-04-04T06:28:43Z")
This Wikipedia page on royalties > **[Royalty payment | Mechanical royalties](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royalties#Mechanical_royalties)** > > Although the terms "mechanical" and mechanical license have their origins in the piano rolls on which music was recorded in the early part of the 20th century, the scope of their modern usage is much wider and covers any copyrighted audio composition that is rendered mechanically (i.e., without human performers). As such, it includes: has a list of the statutory royalty rates for webcasts and lists all the royalties in the “0.0x¢” format. Are they making a mistake or is the “0.02¢” format completely acceptable because everyone knows it means “$0.02¢”? I can’t decide. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/2 "2012-04-04T07:07:54Z")
Ask Verizon. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/3 "2012-04-04T07:27:50Z")
Yeah I know about the Verizon debacle. But a spoken “point zero two cents” is clear, and is different from a written “0.02¢”, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/4 "2012-04-04T08:00:19Z")
“20¢” means twenty cents. “2¢” means two cents. “0.2¢” means two tenths of a cent. "0.02¢"means two hundredths of a cent. “0.002¢” means two thousandths of a cent. And so on. It is totally unambiguous. Well, except for people screw it up so much that you have to double check that they wrote what they really meant to write. “$20.00” means twenty dollars. “$2.00” means two dollars. “$0.20” means twenty cents. “$0.02” means two cents. “$0.002” means two tenths of a cent. “$0.02¢” is totally meaningless. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/5 "2012-04-04T12:57:13Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > Yeah I know about the Verizon debacle. But a spoken “point zero two cents” is clear, and is different from a written “0.02¢”, isn’t it? It’s only ambiguous because the average moron doesn’t understand the difference, and when they see .02 anything, they assume “2 cents.” Joe ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/6 "2012-04-04T13:12:43Z")
> [@Isamu](#): > > This Wikipedia page on royalties > > [Royalty payment - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royalties#Mechanical_royalties) > > has a list of the statutory royalty rates for webcasts and lists all the royalties in the “0.0x¢” format. Are they making a mistake or is the “0.02¢” format completely acceptable because everyone knows it means “$0.02¢”? I can’t decide. 😕 _0.02¢_ means exactly what it says. Two thousandths of a cent. I have no idea what you mean by _$0.02¢_ ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/7 "2012-04-04T13:16:20Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > _0.02¢_ means exactly what it says. Two thousandths of a cent. > > I have no idea what you mean by _$0.02¢_ The problem is, it \*should \*be unambiguous, but it is so often done wrong. Loads of prices are marked in the form, e.g. 0.49c when they mean 49c. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/8 "2012-04-04T13:19:22Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > The problem is, it \*should \*be unambiguous, but it is so often done wrong. Loads of prices are marked in the form, e.g. 0.49c when they mean 49c. The U.S. Copyright Office does not make this error. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/9 "2012-04-04T13:20:25Z")
> [@wheresgeorge04](#): > > It’s only ambiguous because the average moron doesn’t understand the difference, and when they see .02 anything, they assume “2 cents.” Or, when they want to write two cents, they start with .02, then add the cents sign instead of using the correct dollar sign. In this case, since they’re linking to a official US Copyright Office document, I would assume they did not make an obvious mistake, and they really mean 2 hundredths of a cent. ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/10 "2012-04-04T13:20:59Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > _0.02¢_ means exactly what it says. Two thousandths of a cent. The first column to the right of the decimal is the tenths column. The second column to the right of the decimal is the hundredths column. The third column to the right of the decimal is the thousandths column. 0.02¢ is two hundredths of a cent. 0.002¢ is two thousandths of a cent. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/11 "2012-04-04T13:26:28Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > The problem is, it \*should \*be unambiguous, but it is so often done wrong. Loads of prices are marked in the form, e.g. 0.49c when they mean 49c. I keep on saying that one of these days, I’m gonna go up to the cash register and produce a single penny to pay for an item marked ‘.99¢’. If I ever do, I’ll be sure to share the story here. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/12 "2012-04-04T13:27:40Z")
If they wanted to write it in the .02 format they should have wrote it as $.02 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/13 "2012-04-04T13:31:28Z")
> [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > 0.02¢ is two hundredths of a cent. > 0.002¢ is two thousandths of a cent. :smack: Of course I knew that. What’s that law about getting things wrong in your own post correcting someone else? > [@Hampshire](#): > > If they wanted to write it in the .02 format they should have wrote it as $.02 But they don’t mean $0.02. They mean 0.02¢, which is $0.0002 ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/14 "2012-04-04T19:24:21Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I keep on saying that one of these days, I’m gonna go up to the cash register and produce a single penny to pay for an item marked ‘.99¢’. > > If I ever do, I’ll be sure to share the story here. Be sure to tell them they can keep the change. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/15 "2012-04-04T22:28:24Z")
ETA: Never mind. I thought there was supposed to be a “$0.02¢” format. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/16 "2012-04-04T22:53:02Z")
Now if we could just get people to stop writing “$20 dollars.” ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/17 "2012-04-04T23:08:09Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > Now if we could just get people to stop writing “$20 dollars.” And VIN number, ATM machine, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/18 "2012-04-05T04:05:00Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > Now if we could just get people to stop writing “$20 dollars.” > [@drewtwo99](#): > > And VIN number, ATM machine, etc… Y’all need to file a complaint with the Department of Repetition and Redundancy Division. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/19 "2012-04-05T04:20:56Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > Ask Verizon. I remember this, does anyone have a link? ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2012, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784/20 "2012-04-05T10:21:24Z")
> [@chacoguy](#): > > I remember this, does anyone have a link? Here the full version: [http://verizonmath.blogspot.com/2007/08/original-recording-of-verizon-customer.html](http://verizonmath.blogspot.com/2007/08/original-recording-of-verizon-customer.html) There are some shortened versions on youtube; I wouldn’t be half as patient as this guy though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-confused-is-0-02-two-cents-or-point-zero-two-cents/617784.md?page=2)