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FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

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Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#151

Post by siliconc0w »

Past canceling, there are so many problems with subscription programs. Too many products are unusable without a subscription that offer no additional value. Or disabling the subscription cripples product features that have no dependency on the remote service. Or they can 'alter the deal' at any point where what you get for what you pay can change despite the fact the product hasn't.

Ideally 'the market' would punish such companies but it seems to do the opposite in that once a dark pattern becomes mainstream, everyone quickly adopts it, and consumers don't really get any real choices.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#153

Post by NotPractical »

coldpie wrote: post #4

Passed 3-2 along party lines. Remember this when you're going to vote. Elections matter.

Not surprised that you're being downvoted despite telling the truth, because "politics is off-topic while technology is on-topic" (even though politics is often deeply intertwined with technology).

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#154

Post by patrickmcnamara »

cptaj wrote: post #150
fooqux wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. The fact that multiple companies are springing up with the main selling point being "help you cancel subscriptions you thought you already cancelled" should be a wake up call to the legislature that this problem has gotten out of hand.

For sure. I hate excessive regulation, but if companies keep poisoning the well, action has to be taken

This isn't excessive at all. Making it easy to unsubscribe from things is totally reasonable to regulate in any world.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#155

Post by rachofsunshine »

kibwen wrote: post #110
rachofsunshine wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This feels like one of those things that could be solved on the payment end with something like a unique payment ID for each subscription, rather than giving a CC number. Then you just enable or disable payment IDs (perhaps for a limited time, e.g., "create a payment ID that works for Netflix for the next three months but not after that"), rather than relying on vendors to decide whether they feel like charging you o…

A number of credit card companies offer virtual card numbers that you can generate to avoid giving out your real number. I agree that it should be more normalized, widespread, and automatic, but it is already possible to start doing this today.

Yeah, I was thinking of what I could do with a company Brex card - but I can't with my personal CC, at least not directly through my bank (though as others note apparently Google Pay does this now).

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#156

Post by thefourthchime »

ajkjk wrote: post #28

There are so many things like this that have needed fixing for such a long time. The fact that something is happening, even slowly, is so heartening. If your reaction is wondering if this is legal then you should be interested in the passing of new laws that make it unequivocally legal. Society should be able to govern itself.

Now, let's institute an actual price rule. I can't rent an Airbnb or book a plane ticket without being lied to about what the actual prices is.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#157

Post by smt88 »

alwayslikethis wrote: post #129
croes wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it will stay that way if Trump gets a 2nd term.

fwiw JD Vance has voiced support a few times for keeping Lina Khan who is pushing a lot of this agenda.

There is absolutely no chance Trump's donors, which include the A16Z clowns, Elon Musk, Larry Ellison, and a lot of anti-regulation people in Silicon Valley, are going to allow Lina Khan to stick around. Vice presidents have no power, and Vance is not on the ticket because Trump is interested in his opinion on the FTC. He's on the ticket because he said he wouldn't have peacefully transferred power like Pence did, and that's the only reason.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#158

Post by smt88 »

bilsbie wrote: post #104

It seems like all this sketchiness actually hurts these companies. I do ten times more subscriptions when I can go through apple and know I can cancel in 5 seconds.

For every "you" avoiding subscriptions, there's an idiot like me who has had several $5-10/mo. subscriptions for years because I keep hitting the "call customer service to cancel" wall and procrastinating.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#159

Post by burkaman »

alwayslikethis wrote: post #129
croes wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it will stay that way if Trump gets a 2nd term.

fwiw JD Vance has voiced support a few times for keeping Lina Khan who is pushing a lot of this agenda.

The vice president's opinions are not relevant, especially if they only stated those opinions before joining the presidential ticket.

Re: FTC announces "click-to-cancel" rule making it easier to cancel subscriptions

#160

Post by xerox13ster »

alwayslikethis wrote: post #129
croes wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it will stay that way if Trump gets a 2nd term.

fwiw JD Vance has voiced support a few times for keeping Lina Khan who is pushing a lot of this agenda.

It's not worth the bits this line was printed to screen with.

Trump will do away with the FTC because it stands in the way of their goal of dismantling the executive administration. The only thing JD Vance supports about keeping Lina Khan is keeping her captured and institutionally bound so she cannot bring legislation forward against their agenda as a citizen.

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