Hi all - glad to see the interview creating such a buzz!
Regarding all your questions, I've listed all the original source texts of the law and its implementing guidance here. http://www.consumerrightsdirective.info/links-and-resources
Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
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Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#32Oy. That was legal? It seems that I have been cross-border shopping a bit too carelessly. I know that the English Newspapers will manage to put an anti-EU spin on this, but cross-border e-commerce has to become easier. From regulation to shipping cost, there are a lot of things that need to be harmonized.
The actual EU directive is from 2011, but it takes some time for it to get adopted in local legislation; more time for any transition periods to pass (as in, here's the law, change your process by yyyy/mm/dd), and even more time while the habits change.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#33I wonder why there seem to be no companies that use "not being cheating bastards" as a marketing advantage. I'd gladly pay more to buy from a shop that emphasizes transparency and fairness.
(UK) This is basically what you get from John Lewis, and the Co-Operative; both are the last vestiges of the old mutual movement.
The building societies used to be a good option for non-aggressive finance, but almost all of them sold out.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#34"A failure to comply cancels the transaction. You can get your money back and keep the goods. If the sale was for a service or a digital download, the contract is cancelled and no further payments are due." I would think that, under contract law, you get your money back and you return the goods - that would be cancelling the transaction. Likewise for digital downloads or services. Can anyone explain why the provider…
Because that could create a situation where the seller can put a burden on you. (arcane rules on how to return goods, trying to get shipment expenses from you, etc.)
We probably should have clarified that this is an online and and offline law affecting all sales and purchases, not just e-commerce ones.
The law provides better protections to consumers, but it also provides some protections to retailers against some of the dodgy practices they've had to deal with from consumers. Returns and expenses are a HUGE part of the law.
My favourite bit is what I call the "anti-wardrobing provision". Under the new law, when you return an item, retailers can now deduct a fair percentage of its cash value from your refund if you have returned it clearly damaged or un-resellable. This is because of wardrobing - the practice of buying an item of clothing, deliberately keeping the tags on, wearing it once, and returning it for a refund stinking of your night out.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
A lot of extras are sold on the plane or at checkin (like 60EUR for a boarding pass) That's why I never fly with them. Too much BS to waddle through.
What's the 60 EUR for? Printing your boarding pass?
They updated it last year: "Starting December 2013, boarding card reissue fees will be cut from €70 or £70 to €15 or £15."
You can see their fee schedule at: http://www.ryanair.com/en/fees/ — yes, they charge a fee to even assign you a seat.
(Anecdote: I had a printed boarding pass all crumpled up at the bottom of my bag (they let you check in weeks before your flight, so it had to survive for a while) and my poorly kept pass was basically unreadable by their scanners. The baggage check rep printed a new boarding pass for free (without even asking, since she couldn't exactly scan my home printed and crumpled paper)).
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#36TIL there's a thing called "Dark Patterns".
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#37I wonder why there seem to be no companies that use "not being cheating bastards" as a marketing advantage. I'd gladly pay more to buy from a shop that emphasizes transparency and fairness.
(UK) This is basically what you get from John Lewis, and the Co-Operative; both are the last vestiges of the old mutual movement. The building societies used to be a good option for non-aggressive finance, but almost all of them sold out.
The Nationwide Building Society is still a mutual.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#38I feel really bad about the fact that this is a thing. Apparently there are a lot of "entrepreneurs" that will always choose to annoy and damage others for a little currency. Why do these things have to be made illegal? They were immoral to begin with, that alone should stop people from doing it. Shame on you, people who sneak insurance into shopping carts and Ask-Toolbars into Java installers.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#39A good example of beneficial government regulation, for people who refuse to believe such a thing exists. (Another good example is the Internet itself, but it's best to start small)
Yes, a good piece of regulation, but who believes in no regulation? To me, no regulation means no law, which means anarchy. And the only people who want anarchy are the same types of people who would be dead the first day it broke out.
But much of the regulation in the US is regulatory capture. We need regulation for the people, not for the companies. Moving in the right direction is a challenge and we need to break down the illusion that half the population is for good (those on our voting team) and the other half for bad.
Re: Some Dark Patterns Now Illegal in UK
#40Sounds like an excellent law to stop the horrid practices in so many online shops. Let's hope a form of this law spreads throughout Europe and the U.S. This caught my eye, however: "A failure to comply cancels the transaction. You can get your money back and keep the goods. If the sale was for a service or a digital download, the contract is cancelled and no further payments are due." Wow. Seems like it would make a…
> Let's hope a form of this law spreads throughout Europe
Ummm... this is a EU wide law. The UK, as a member state of the EU, had to implement it into UK law (that's how EU laws work).
This is already the law of the land in all EU countries. Nearly all good consumer rights laws are done at the EU level.