US court strikes down FTC ‘Click to Cancel’ rule
A federal appeals court has blocked a key consumer protection rule that would have made it easier for Americans to cancel subscriptions online, dealing a blow to the Federal Trade Commission days before the regulation was set to take effect.
The court ruled that while deceptive subscription practices are a legitimate concern, the FTC’s procedural missteps rendered the entire rule invalid. “Vacatur of the entire Rule is appropriate in this case because of the prejudice suffered by Petitioners as a result of the Commission’s procedural error,” the judges wrote.
US Appeals court has stopped a ‘click-to-cancel’ rule being enforced for subscription servicesIt would’ve required companies like Netflix and Amazon to make it easier to cancel paid subscriptionspic.twitter.com/vJbYWU6A7X
California’s Law Still Stands
The FTC has faced growing pressure to address so-called “negative option marketing,” where consumers are automatically charged for ongoing subscriptions unless they take active steps to cancel. Complaints to the agency about such practices surged to nearly 70 per day in 2024, up from around 42 daily complaints in 2021.
The US government has worked on quite a few FTC rules over the last few years, including one that went into effect back in October 2024 that madeviewbotting livestreams and faking your followers on social mediaillegal in the country.
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