Gaming IndustryFetch the popcorn: US government sues Adobe, says it’s ‘trapped’ consumers with a subs model that’s ‘absurdly hard to cancel’ and ‘ambushed’ them with late feesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Gaming IndustryFetch the popcorn: US government sues Adobe, says it’s ‘trapped’ consumers with a subs model that’s ‘absurdly hard to cancel’ and ‘ambushed’ them with late feesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Michał Chodyra via Getty Images)
The complaintfrom the Department of Justice (DoJ) claims that Adobe “hides” the true cost of its subscriptions in fine print, “behind optional textboxes and hyperlinks,” and deliberately makes cancelling a subscription “onerous and complicated” before it “ambushes” customers with termination fees.
The complaint further alleges that calls or live chats with Adobe support are often “either dropped or disconnected”, breaking federal law, and then it takes aim at the executive suite. Maninder Sawhney, an Adobe vice-president, and David Wadhwani, president of digital media business, are named as having “directed, controlled, had the authority to control, or participated in the acts and practices of Adobe.”
“[The FTC] has taken action against Adobe and two executives for pushing people into subscriptions and then making it absurdly hard to cancel,“writes FTC chair Linda Khan. “Adobe ambushed users with hefty ‘early termination fees’ and threw up obstacles when people tried to cancel.
“Adobe knew its policies made it extraordinarily difficult and frustrating for users who wanted to cancel their subscriptions […] One person wrote ‘Adobe literally will not let me cancel my subscription.’ Because two senior executives were involved in overseeing, directing, controlling, or participating in Adobe’s illegal business practices, they are named in the complaint.”
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It says Adobe is aware of consumer “confusion” but nevertheless “continues its practice of steering consumers to the annual paid monthly plan while obscuring the [early termination fee].” It adds that the company forces consumers to “navigate numerous pages in order to cancel”. Alternatively, they face “resistance and delay from Adobe representatives”, and in some cases users who thought they’d cancelled subsequently found “the company continued to charge them.”
These allegations certainly align with my personal experience. I used to have a copy of Photoshop that I’d mess around with, mainly to create bespoke header images for articles, before Adobe moved over to its subscription-based model. A few years later I needed to create an image, signed up for what I thought was a month’s use of Photoshop, and ended up on the hook for hundreds of pounds. Just my opinion, but: Adobe deserves everything that’s coming its way.
“Adobe trapped customers into year-long subscriptions through hidden early termination fees and numerous cancellation hurdles,” said Samuel Levine, director of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Americans are tired of companies hiding the ball during subscription signup and then putting up roadblocks when they try to cancel.”
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