Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

CTOnews.com March 23, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently proposed a series of new rules aimed at simplifying the process for consumers to cancel various subscription and membership services. The FTC claims that its "Click to Cancel" provision "will effectively free consumers from subscription plans that they do not want to pay for or have not agreed to pay for."

The FTC has laws and regulations in place to protect consumers, but they "do not provide a consistent, clear legal framework for consumers and industry." As a result, the FTC proposed three new regulations:

Simple cancellation mechanism: If consumers cannot easily opt out of any service, the service becomes a means of charging them for unwanted products or services. To that end, the new rules require merchants to make it as easy to cancel subscriptions as it is to open them. For example, if online activation is possible, it must be possible to cancel within the same steps on the same website.

Consent before additional marketing: The new rules allow merchants to market other products or services to consumers or modify existing plans if they try to cancel their participation. However, before marketing, merchants must ask consumers if they would like to hear the marketing message and immediately implement cancellation procedures in the event of rejection.

New requirements for reminders and confirmations: The new rules require merchants to provide annual reminders to consumers participating in non-physical goods-based programs (e.g., online video, music, games, etc.) prior to automatic renewal, and to send confirmation messages to consumers at each charge, including ways to cancel subscriptions.

CTOnews.com understands that these new rules will cover many different types of online services and subscriptions, including apps available in app stores, and will also affect other subscription and membership services, such as gym memberships.

FTC Chairman Lina M. "Businesses often trick consumers into paying for subscriptions they no longer want or didn't sign up for in the first place," Khan said. The proposed new rules would require merchants to make it as easy to cancel subscriptions as it is to open them. This proposal will save consumers time and money, while merchants who continue to use subscription traps will face severe penalties. "

The FTC will soon begin soliciting public comments on the proposals before deciding whether to implement them.

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