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

(www.ftc.gov)
1737 points pseudolus | 9 comments | 16 Oct 24 13:09 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source | bottom
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Spoom ◴[16 Oct 24 14:19 UTC] No.41859299[source]▶
Does the FTC actually have the power to set rules like this effectively now that Chevron deference isn't a thing? I'd imagine e.g. the New York Times, among others, will quickly sue to stop this, no?
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1. ezfe ◴[16 Oct 24 14:21 UTC] No.41859333[source]▶
NYTimes already allows cancelling online for most subscriptions, so I imagine this won't be a big issue for them.
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2. kgermino ◴[16 Oct 24 14:37 UTC] No.41859536[source]▶
That depends on what state you're in right? (i.e. California customers can cancel online, but Wisconsin ones need to talk to an agent)
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3. boringg ◴[16 Oct 24 14:37 UTC] No.41859540[source]▶
Last time I tried it their process is not easy at all.
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4. mikestew ◴[16 Oct 24 14:43 UTC] No.41859633[source]▶
As a Washington resident, I tested this a while back: nope, you can cancel online AFAICT (I didn’t actually cancel, but the click flow indicated that it should work), and do not need to be a CA resident.
5. DHPersonal ◴[16 Oct 24 14:53 UTC] No.41859757[source]▶
My Oklahoma-based subscription required chatting via text online with an agent to cancel.
6. ry4nolson ◴[16 Oct 24 15:03 UTC] No.41859896[source]▶
I'm in Texas and was able to cancel online. It was slightly frictional. I had first paused my subscription. Apparently you can't cancel if your subscription is paused, so I had to reinstate the sub to cancel.
7. afavour ◴[16 Oct 24 15:05 UTC] No.41859924[source]▶
IIRC they implemented online cancellation everywhere a while back.
8. lkbm ◴[16 Oct 24 15:19 UTC] No.41860127[source]▶
USA Today, then. They do not, and most local papers are run by them. They have a "Cancel" button, and when you click it, it says you have to call them, during business hours.

This won't be the case in California, but I've observed this in both Indiana and Texas. I haven't subscribed to the local paper here in NC, because I can tell at a glance that it's the same company and I've already had to dealt with their shenanigans twice.

9. heyoni ◴[17 Oct 24 03:44 UTC] No.41866230[source]▶
Same. Certain subscriptions I won't touch if I couldn't go through it with icloud. nytimes and nytimes cooking were up there as the worst offenders.