The the first sign of a canceling struggle with customer service, I tell them that I'm revoking their permission to charge my card and I'll be filing a chargeback if they do. Never had a negative response.
How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
91–100 of 191 posts
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#92If your credit card provider doesn't offer "virtual credit card number services" as ammunition against these and sooo many other billing and subscription dark patterns, then you're carrying the wrong credit card product. It's the simple, comprehensive antidote to all these tales of woe (and data breaches no less.) I can't imagine doing business online without it.
Does not paying for a service remove the legal liability to owe for the service?
If you credit card is bad because you cancel the virtual card, can't they keep billing you anyway, and also add bad credit card fees on top of it? It is definitely a crime to intentionally write a bad check, is it a crime to supply a virtual credit card number that you know you will invalidate in the future to prevent being billed? That seems equally fraudulent.
I guess I don't see how a virtual credit card prevents debt collection and need to appear in a small claims court down the road.
I am a child of the 80s and 90s, I learned that you play the silly games of big corporations not because they are fair, but because they have very huge legal teams that can and will destroy your life.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#93You know which services I don't have problems cancelling? Ones I subscribe to via Apple's in-app payments. I get that it sucks to have Apple scrape a percentage of my payments for themselves, but if you're a company I don't fully trust and/or want to have total control over my subscription without a bunch of hassle, Apple's IAPs are the way to go. Mostly this is great with the big streaming services. Want Disney+ or…
100% this. Going even further I always get emails when yearly subscriptions are charging in a few days and those emails even include how to cancel the subscription if I no longer wish to use it. I know people love to complain about the App Store, and there are some valid complaints. But companies being forced to use this mechanism for subscriptions is a huge benefit for consumers. Also frankly, it's a huge benefit fo…
A company is “forced” to use Apple for subscriptions. It’s been years since either Netflix or Spotify has even allowed in app subscriptions.
I’m not going to subscribe to some unknown indy outside of the app store and guess what happens when someone changes credit cards or they expire? I’m going to update my Apple payment information. I may or may not update my other subscriptions or I may just decide it’s not worth it and let it lapse.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#94You know which services I don't have problems cancelling? Ones I subscribe to via Apple's in-app payments. I get that it sucks to have Apple scrape a percentage of my payments for themselves, but if you're a company I don't fully trust and/or want to have total control over my subscription without a bunch of hassle, Apple's IAPs are the way to go. Mostly this is great with the big streaming services. Want Disney+ or…
Yes. We have re-invented credit cards again.
The thing is. Credit cards may be in favor of the customer in the US, or maybe EU (I’ve never had a credit card while living in the EU so I really don’t know) but where I used to live, Brazil, the customer has always the burden of proof that something is wrong. One time my card was “cloned” and I had to go to court to remove the debt from my name. And I’ll never forget the reply that I got over and over from multiple levels of customer service: “we can’t do anything if you don’t provide the receipt of the purchase”
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#95You know which services I don't have problems cancelling? Ones I subscribe to via Apple's in-app payments. I get that it sucks to have Apple scrape a percentage of my payments for themselves, but if you're a company I don't fully trust and/or want to have total control over my subscription without a bunch of hassle, Apple's IAPs are the way to go. Mostly this is great with the big streaming services. Want Disney+ or…
Apple does this because the alternative would be devastatingly bad press. I mean, why do they permit 3 day trials that start billing at $9.99/week after that? For an app that creates ringtones? How many phone apps in the world are worth $520 per year? And BTW, that "3 day trial"? It's actually 2 days since you have to cancel at least 24 hours before the subscription renews. So it's really 33% less than they claim. If…
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Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#96damn, this site is trash.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
I was stuck in a loop where my son's iCloud account had a subscription to Parallels, but it was on my credit card. He lost his password because he's 12. Even though I'm the parent on the account, it wouldn't let me cancel his purchase. But it also wouldn't let me reset his password for 6 weeks, and only a week into that period a $100 parallels subscription was going to go through. Fortunately, American Express revers…
US based? Next time tell them he's 12 and made the account himself without your permission. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children%27s_Online_Privacy_...
I could have, but I don't think I should have to massage the facts to get this fixed. I made the account. He just lost his password.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#98You know which services I don't have problems cancelling? Ones I subscribe to via Apple's in-app payments. I get that it sucks to have Apple scrape a percentage of my payments for themselves, but if you're a company I don't fully trust and/or want to have total control over my subscription without a bunch of hassle, Apple's IAPs are the way to go. Mostly this is great with the big streaming services. Want Disney+ or…
Still wouldn't fix the problem of a creditor reporting a delinquent payment to a credit bureau, and it's hard to know if that would happen up front. I don't think Apple's solution here comes risk free, but I see your points on the usability enhancements.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#99Earlier quoted context omitted.
Once you figure out how to cancel via the App Store it’s great. It did take me a while to even go looking for it but once I had, it was awesome.
How do you do this? And is this applicable if the subscription is made thru their website (like Netflix)?
Generally, Settings -> iCloud (click your name/emoji) -> Subscriptions
Only applies to subscriptions made through the Apple ecosystem.
Re: How companies use dark patterns to keep you subscribed
#100You know which services I don't have problems cancelling? Ones I subscribe to via Apple's in-app payments. I get that it sucks to have Apple scrape a percentage of my payments for themselves, but if you're a company I don't fully trust and/or want to have total control over my subscription without a bunch of hassle, Apple's IAPs are the way to go. Mostly this is great with the big streaming services. Want Disney+ or…
Still wouldn't fix the problem of a creditor reporting a delinquent payment to a credit bureau, and it's hard to know if that would happen up front. I don't think Apple's solution here comes risk free, but I see your points on the usability enhancements.
As I understand it, Apple's subscriptions represent the subscriptions themselves, not just the payment behind the subscription. So cancelling through the subscription interface on iOS actually handles the cancellation of the subscription, not just the payment.