The FTC has charged Amazon and several Amazon executives with knowingly misleading millions of consumers into enrolling in Prime, violating the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA). The FTC alleged Amazon created confusing and deceptive user interfaces to lead consumers to enroll in Prime without their knowledge. Compounding these deceptive enrollment practices, Amazon also created a complex and difficult process for consumers seeking to cancel their Prime subscription, with the goal of preventing consumers from cancelling Prime. Amazon documents discovered in the lead up to trial showed that Amazon executives and employees knowingly discussed these unlawful enrollment and cancellation issues, with comments like “subscription driving is a bit of a shady world” and leading consumers to unwanted subscriptions is “an unspoken cancer.”
BAHAHA I didn’t realize that the trial had already started!
As part of the settlement, Amazon is required to include a clear button for customers to decline signing up for Prime. This means that the company can no longer have a button that says “No, I don’t want free shipping.”
Amazon must also clearly disclose the subscription cost during the enrollment process, along with the billing date and frequency, whether the subscription auto-renews, and the procedure for cancellation. Additionally, the company is required to create an easy way for consumers to cancel Prime, using the same method that consumers used to sign up for the service.
It did; Judge John Chun’s ruling last week in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington - dismissing Amazon’s claims re: clawing back privileged documents “inadvertently-revealed” during the discovery process - allowed the case to proceed to the jury.
I don’t even understand how Amazon’s subscription offer / policy varies from any other similar company or service, and how they violated a law but maybe that’s just me….
Prime membership seems pretty straightforward to me.
Maybe it’s the people that need directions for shampoo that are the issue (to borrow a line from a senator).
I suspect this is the point. It sets precedent for eliminating the dark patterns. Now other companies can’t point to Amazon and say “it’s ok if we’re duping consumers because Amazon is doing it bigger and better” type of thing.
Amazon enrolled millions of consumers in Prime subscriptions without their consent, and knowingly made it difficult for consumers to cancel. Amazon will be required to pay a $1 billion civil penalty, provide $1.5 billion in refunds back to consumers harmed by their deceptive Prime enrollment practices, and cease unlawful enrollment and cancellation practices for Prime.
I think Adobe takes the cake for deceptive subscription practices. My son signed up for a student discount, good for one year. At the end of the year he tried to cancel. They informed him he was under contract and unable to cancel. Apparently this is a huge thing they started doing, keeping people under an ongoing contract that would fine them for cancelling, except he is a minor. I got on the phone and said cancel this or I will be reporting you for signing a contract with a minor.
They cancelled him, but neither of us will never touch Adobe again.
That’s interesting because we were using Adobe and then didn’t need it and had no issue cancelling it. Turns out that we needed it again so we do have an active account for the business…
