Credit: Inside the MagicWe’ve all been there before. You sign up for the free trial of a streaming service or food delivery service, and before you realize it, you’ve paid for a service you forgot you had for months.
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However, once a consumer realizes this, the streaming service makes it virtually impossible to cancel the subscription. The media companies make you jump through dozens of hoops and confirmations before you can just stop your subscription.
Relief may be on its way to customers who just want to avoid paying the monthly fees of a recurring subscription. After consumer complaints, dozens of states have started working on new laws that force streaming services to institute one-click cancelations. However, the streaming services are fighting back against those laws at the state level.
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As several states and the Federal Trade Commission contemplated “click to cancel” laws, the Internet & Television Association, the trade group that represents streaming services like Disney+ and Amazon Prime, said that such rules would only serve to “confuse the customers.”
The group argued that some customers have these streaming services as part of a cable TV bundle, and canceling them would raise their prices.
Michael Powell, president and CEO of NCTA – The Internet & Television Association, said that:
Three out of four of the cable and broadband customers who called to cancel end up retaining some or all service after speaking with an agent.
Tennessee, Virginia, South Carolina, Minnesota, and Utah are considering laws prohibiting streaming services from auto-renewing a monthly subscription without the customer’s consent. Their bills are similar to one recently signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom, which requires companies to get permission from the customer before renewing a subscription after the introductory period.
The Federal Communications Commission proposes regulations forcing subscription services to offer one-click cancelations and requiring consent before enrolling in recurring monthly subscriptions. However, the Internet and Television Association is also currently fighting that rule.
Unused or rarely used subscriptions cost Americans millions each year, as they simply forget when the trial period ends or even that they have those subscriptions.
Steve Baker, an attorney and former regional director at the Federal Trade Commission, said:
I’m sure a lot of the time people just don’t get around to [canceling] it. And they make it hard to cancel. It’s not something you necessarily file a complaint about it. It’s more of a minor annoyance.
So, go through your subscriptions. You never know what you might be paying for.