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Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

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Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#271

Post by Matheus28 »

throwaway287391 wrote: post #259
nielsbot wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is one reason I prefer subscribing via Apple's store where possible--it's always a hassle-free cancellation and all my subscriptions are in one screen.

My favorite thing about Apple subscriptions is free trials. You can sign up for a trial and then immediately cancel it and still use your full trial period. No nags. No more need to make a calendar reminder "CANCEL X" on the day before (and inevitably ignore it when the day comes if you're me). It would be even better if they added a prompt on the free trial signup "Become a paid subscriber after free trial ends?" so…

Funny thing is that it works like this only for other apps. If you try to cancel some of Apple’s own subscriptions during the free trial, it will end immediately.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#272

Post by rightbyte »

Alupis wrote: post #251
rightbyte wrote: post #248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When I was a teenager I was charged for watching porn at a German hotel just by switching channels and watching the porn channel for too long, maybe two minutes. I think those kind of scams are quite common when they already have your credit card. To make the story more relevant for your point my father payed the bill at the checkout and I denied watching porn at all. He got mad at the hotel and wrote legal complaint…

That's like saying "but I only opened the mini-bar bottles for a little bit". You were certainly warned what would happen, and likely had some sort of parental advisory warning you clicked through. IDK German law regarding these things, but in the US you usually have to manually opt-into "adult" channels when at a hotel. The fact that you denied watching it at all really serves to make my point, though. Users deny de…

It was in like 2002 so I dunno how the TV reported what channel was viewed technically.

I remember that I knew it was a pay channel, but I thought it would go dark after a sneak peak unless I called some pay number for a code or something, like the pay TV channels on the satellite TV at home.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#273

Post by throwaway287391 »

Matheus28 wrote: post #271
throwaway287391 wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My favorite thing about Apple subscriptions is free trials. You can sign up for a trial and then immediately cancel it and still use your full trial period. No nags. No more need to make a calendar reminder "CANCEL X" on the day before (and inevitably ignore it when the day comes if you're me). It would be even better if they added a prompt on the free trial signup "Become a paid subscriber after free trial ends?" so…

Funny thing is that it works like this only for other apps. If you try to cancel some of Apple’s own subscriptions during the free trial, it will end immediately.

Lol, damn. Didn't know that but somehow I'm not shocked.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#274

Post by ryukoposting »

kevinmchugh wrote: post #55

Illinois says that any subscription must be cancelable in the same place it's created, so if I sign up for Hulu using my smart tv,I can cancel there as well. It's really good. People often complain about the proliferation of streaming services, but thanks to the law mentioned above, I'm able to subscribe and then immediately cancel. If I decide I want more time I can resubscribe later. I get to watch what I want with…

You can't cancel a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel subscription online. You have to call them and sit on hold for god-knows-how-long. I ended up just sending my bank a stop payment order.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#275

Post by bell-cot »

Daydream: Companies with customer-hostile subscriptions policies are all required to use the IRS's new "Advanced Corporate Tax Management" web site. Where the ever-shifting dark patterns of UI and ever-resetting defaults (especially the "voluntary extra contribution to the US Treasury") make their lives difficult. And that IRS site's webmasters collect a percentage on those "extra contributions", and appeals can only be made in person on the ISS, and ...

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#276

Post by balderdash »

hnboredhn wrote: post #268
nielsbot wrote: post #200

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is one reason I prefer subscribing via Apple's store where possible--it's always a hassle-free cancellation and all my subscriptions are in one screen.

The other benefit is simply seeing the current subscriptions, even if you had to cancel elsewhere. I should be able to see on my Bank of America credit card which companies are going to bill me within a month - and either be able to block it or click a link to cancel. I feel like I've seen some smaller financial services which have this feature, but most people want to use a major credit card.

I just put all of my recurring charges on a single credit card (car insurance, Netflix, etc.), and then don’t use that card for anything else, it makes it so much easier to track/manage.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#277

Post by OkayPhysicist »

a_wild_dandan wrote: post #150
synetic wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Having something this awesome in the U.S. would cut out so many billions of dollars of profit that there is zero chance of it ever being implemented in my lifetime. In the U.S. the purpose of government and regulations are to make it easier for entrenched companies to make a buck. Unfortunately for the citizenry just about all the low hanging fruit in terms of providing a government service to make lives easier and/o…

My favorite example being tax season: The fun mini-game wherein the government knows what you owe, but makes you guess anyway, and guessing wrong could get you in trouble. So we pay experts to make better guesses for us. And some of us know about an Easter egg that might unlock a free guess. It's a delightful game.

The government only knows some of the information for your taxes. Now, it would be a massive improvement if the government just came up with a number based on your 1099s and W-2s and sent you a bill with "Did we miss anything?", but it's not fair to say the IRS knows exactly how much you owe.

Re: Disney, Netflix, and more are fighting FTC's 'click to cancel' proposal

#279

Post by avar »

bobviolier wrote: post #33
terinjokes wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I keep running into Dutch e-commerce sites that advertise prices without fees and VAT, and I haven't figured out who I'm supposed to complain to. Just yesterday, the first indication the prices weren't accurate is when I saw the real total in iDEAL.

I am from the Netherlands, and I never see prices without VAT on websites. What is an example? Edit: not saying your lying, just thinking it might be geo related sometimes?

Prices without VAT are the main listed price on Dutch websites whose primary clientele isn't the end consumer.

Examples I remembered offhand: elektramat.nl, rvspaleis.nl

Those both list the price with VAT too, but the primary list price is without.

You'll find plenty of more examples e.g. if you think about what the house you're in is made of, and look for those materials in bulk. E.g. I-beams, pallets of wood, insulation etc.

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