Adobe sued by U.S. for allegedly 'trapping' users in Photoshop subscriptions | Mashable.
Adobe sued by U.S. for allegedly 'trapping' users in Photoshop subscriptions
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| Adobe Photoshop is on the U.S. government's radar. Credit: PixieMe / Shutterstock.com |
Adobe, the company behind Photoshop and Illustrator, is now under a legal microscope after the U.S., based on a referral from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), accused the software giant of "trapping" users in subscriptions they don't want to keep.
According to the complaint, the U.S. claims that Adobe does not properly disclose to consumers that there is a pricey early termination fee (ETF) for its "annual, paid monthly" (APM) plan. This subscription type is available for Photoshop, as well as Premiere Pro, Acrobat Pro, InDesign, Lightroom, and more.
"During enrollment, Adobe hides material terms of its APM plan in fine print and behind optional textboxes and hyperlinks, providing disclosures that are designed to go unnoticed and that most consumers never see," the U.S. said in the complaint, adding that Adobe infringed on several consumer-protection laws.
Adobe in legal hot water for alleged deceitful practices
Adobe, according to the U.S., makes the cancellation process "onerous," hindering users from terminating their subscriptions with an ETF "ambush."
To put the complaint into perspective, allow us to walk you through the purchase flow. If you click on "See plan and pricing details" for any service — let's use Photoshop as an example — you'll see multiple available plans, including "annual, paid monthly."
The problem, however, is that users must hover their mouse over an "i" icon to get any information regarding an ETF, the complaint pointed out.
The U.S. claims that Adobe is "hiding" its APM plan terms in "fine print" behind hyperlinks and optional textboxes that are designed to be overlooked.
Even with the information provided by the gray box, which says, "If you cancel after 14 days, your service will continue until the end of that month's billing period, and you will be charged an early termination fee," the complaint alleges that the information about the ETF isn't sufficient.
"The plan selection page does not state anywhere that the APM plan requires a one-year commitment," the U.S. said.
The U.S. is seeking monetary damages for those who were harmed. Plus, it wants Adobe to put an end to these alleged deceptive practices.
When reached for comment, Adobe pointed Mashable to a newsroom statement on the matter from Dana Rao, the company's general counsel and chief trust officer: “Subscription services are convenient, flexible and cost effective to allow users to choose the plan that best fits their needs, timeline and budget. Our priority is to always ensure our customers have a positive experience. We are transparent with the terms and conditions of our subscription agreements and have a simple cancellation process. We will refute the FTC’s claims in court.”
UPDATE: Jun. 17, 2024, 4:38 p.m. EDT This article was updated to include a response from Adobe.
Topics Photoshop
Stopped using adobe years ago , if you can’t own software then I don’t want it. Not going to pay subscriptions when you used to be able to own photoshop, absolutely ridiculous
ReplyDeleteman if only there was a way to prevent this from happening imagine if copyright lasted for, i dunno, 20 years instead of hundreds. oh well, a man can dream
ReplyDeleteThat is why one of the many reasons tech is for Trump
ReplyDeleteI changed my billing info and keep trying to bill my old card in addition to the new one. Fuck em.
ReplyDeleteWhen the government sues a company for abusing their customers, it's just the government saying "where's our cut" because they certainly aren't giving any of the fines back to the people.
ReplyDeletePuts? 👀⬇️
ReplyDeleteMe, an avid pirate user: Wait, you guys are paying for Adobe?
ReplyDeleteIf the government thinks adobe is a bunch of subscription nazis they should try to cancel SiriusXM
ReplyDeleteNordpvn is another one, they updated the app; then I could not use it, could not figure out why even with customer service and multiple deletes and downloads. Finally gave up and canceled.
ReplyDeleteI agree- the only way I was able to drop a service for pdf’s was to cancel my card; then they could not renew automatically; they sent me notices for weeks, then finally all quiet on the western front. They never gave me a way to call.
ReplyDeleteOk now do every single mobile app ever
ReplyDeleteThoose burner one use type credit cards are amazing for subscriptions services ya can cancel the card and there nothing a subscription company can do about it
ReplyDeleteAdobe and all these subscription apps/services and lifetime (but not really) purchases got me back to piracy.
ReplyDeleteThis happened to me and I just canceled the card and started ignoring Adobe because they were so ridiculous. Glad this is happening.
ReplyDeleteForce em to just go back to a one and done purchase of the software !!!
ReplyDeleteFinally. Adobe had me rage quit them a decade ago for this exact thing. Despite feeling helpless, I wrote them the most profanity laden letter I've ever written. It felt good. Knowing that these slimy fucks are getting sued for it feels even better!
ReplyDeleteJust tell me when I’ll get my settlement check.
ReplyDeleteI know they got me. I got suckered in by free Creative Cloud at the start of covid. Then quitting cost me 100's of dollars.
ReplyDeleteYup, had the same issue with Adobe’s subscriptions and cancellations. The cancellation area was difficult to find. Also got charged during the initial free months. Made complaints to the BBB in California, and got everything refunded.
ReplyDeleteThey need to sue the gyms. I’m literally in my car right now from trying to get a short membership at Esporta & the prices they gave me are insane. They are trying to get me into a contract which is something i’ve been trying to stay away from since the pandemic. Canceling those things is nearly impossible.
ReplyDeleteMaking the case for piracy
ReplyDeleteAdobe is a company of thieves
ReplyDeleteGood.
ReplyDeleteGood.
ReplyDeleteF’ Adobe.
Editing and signing pdfs isn’t space age technology and should not cost $30/month. I’ll print the doc out, sign it, scan it back in and save the pages as a pdf just to avoid paying them. I know my complaint/point isn’t the same as the context of the headline, but I stand my ground.
ReplyDeleteI hate adobe. Especially how they try to sneak other bull shit software in with their sorry ass pdf reader. Also why is your damn reader now over 200 mb?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI when I tried to cancel my subscription they wouldn’t let you do it through the online log in. You have to use the cloud program which I had deleted in anticipation, I tried to contact support cause they make it impossible to realize you have to use the cloud application.
I tried 3 separate time to have service agent help and I was ghosted every time.
Came here to say Fruck Adobe.
ReplyDeletePSA: YOU CAN CANCEL YOUR PLAN WITHOUT PAYING THE EARLY CANCELLATION FEE
ReplyDeleteTo do this, change your plan and then cancel the new plan. When you change your plan adobe will refund you for the rest of the month. You will have to pay for the new plan, but they will refund what you paid for it. Don't panic if they won't allow you to manage your account after changing plans. This is normal. Just wait a few min and you can cancel.
I got a free student subscription to Adobe from college. When that was up they auto-signed me to the highest tier and just didn’t tell me. I notice after the second month and had to get my bank to challenge it
ReplyDeleteI hope they have to pay a giant fine! Adobe has screwed my bank account many times.
ReplyDeleteMaybe this is an America vs Canada thing... but honestly their plans are perfectly clear to me on their website? I mean they are a scummy company but they aren't trapping anyone.
ReplyDeleteAdobe is one of the scummiest companies of all time, no doubt
ReplyDeleteAdobe really kicked a hornets nest. Bunch of greedy idiots.
ReplyDeleteUS sues Adobe and will make money while allowing Adobe to continue to do this same shit. We wont see the money or changes…. just gov trolls wanting to be paid off.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering how far I'd have to scroll to see someone trying to make this out to be a bad thing.
DeleteTo this day I hate Adobe because of how difficult it has been to cancel and I had to keep paying. I spent 3.5 hours on the phone with someone in India in order to cancel subscription. They kept trying to upsell me and then put me on hold. Now I use open source pdf readers.
ReplyDeleteI can concur doing some computer work with that, they made it really hard to cancel. Pain in the behind lots of modules, dreadful 1800 number
ReplyDeleteSpread the word: Affinity Photo, and their other software, are very fair competition to certain Adobe products
ReplyDeleteFUCK adobe. Expensive for no reason.
ReplyDeleteWhen I needed to end two licenses for my business, it took an hour of fighting with an Adobe rep before they conceded. Absolutely horrible company.
ReplyDeleteJust knock off the subscription plan, Adobe, and all will be well again.
ReplyDeleteAwesome... now do HOAs.
ReplyDeleteGoing to play the sue me sue you blues.
ReplyDeleteYes, they did! I had to pay over $300+ to cancel services.
ReplyDeleteHow TurboTax still gets away with this each year beats me.
ReplyDeleteJust pirate it. If you have moral qualms, remember that you are sacrificing your soul for the good of humanity.
ReplyDeleteThey just made the moral dilemma much easier with the announcement that they will be pirating all of your content made with their software.
DeleteGlad to see Adobe joining the pirate fleets.
DeleteThey are not welcome in Nassau.
DeleteCanceled last week. Fucking ridiculous how many sub pages I had to go through to find it.
ReplyDeletePeople genuinely pay for Adobe products?
ReplyDeleteIirc there’s only like one month of the year where you’re able to cancel or else you’re subscribed for a whole ‘nother year. If that isn’t predatory I have no idea what is. Hands down the hardest company to unsubscribe from. Fuck adobe
ReplyDeleteIf I start a subscription online, I should be able to cancel it online as well.
ReplyDeleteSirius radio is guilty of this too
I signed up through PayPal exactly to avoid this bs. The only option is to sign up monthly. After signing up and trying to cancel a couple months later now I'm actually an annual subscription but paid monthly. Never saw the word annual while signing up.
ReplyDeleteI just revoked the Adobe authorization through PayPal. Adobe said they would cancel me if I didn't fix the billing. No termination fees since they can't bill me. Fuck Adobe. Use photopea.
ReplyDeleteI read though the complaint, and the government's argument basically boils down to
The plan selection page (Exhibit 1) says "Fee applies if you cancel after 14 days" instead of "Early Termination Fee applies if you cancel after 14 days"
The plan selection page doesn't say that the annual plan requires an annual commitment.
Unless there's something else under the pile of reactions, I don't think they're going to win this one.
I am a victim of their Premiere Pro subscription right now. It sucks
ReplyDeletePay for subscriptions with a credit so you can just cancel the card (report stolen) to end any recurring charges.
DeleteWill adobe be the next IBM - a dinosaur begging to die?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteYES!!!! Finally something being done about it.
They've got me before. The constant workaround.
Very good here.
I’ve just been trying to get out of mine due to returning to full time role. Subbed for like 10 years without a break but still slugged with an early cancellation fee. Out of all the issues with this stuff the one that absolutely needs to be rectified immediately is the fact that you cannot turn off the auto-renewal. You have to remember to cancel in your final billing month but they’re banking on people forgetting and not realising til the 14 day grace period is over.
ReplyDeleteI had for years an expensive adobe business subscription. When I finally could get rid of it, I discovered the only way to do that was by chatting online with them. Some dude -probably in a low wage country- went "I see you want to cancel, how about a discount?" - I refused 4 times ever increasing discounts. In the end the price he was offering was literally 1/7 of the recurring price (forever), half a year free, and with all functionality still in it. The recurring price was just below 10 €/month - the suite I was cancelling was just below 70 €/month.
ReplyDeleteAt that point I got mad. I felt ripped off. I told him to stop making ever lower offers as he was making sure I felt ripped off for years and would never buy anything from Adobe ever again. Apparently that finally did the thing and he cancelled the subscription without further pushing not to cancel.
But well the LPT to remember: even if you need a subscription: try to cancel, see how low they go with offers for you and push it till they give you a permanent discount in addition to temporary benefits. Even if they don't and actually cancel: you can always resubscribe - but getting it at 1/7 of the regular price really is worth it even if you can afford it - do it for the rest who need them to realize their crap is way too expensive.
FWIW: I moved to Affinity to cover what I still need.
This happened to me.
ReplyDeleteGood, Adobe is such a scummy company. I've been using so many alternatives
ReplyDeleteAnd they wonder why we sail the high seas.
ReplyDeleteAdobe is one of the scummiest businesses on the internet; there's a reason so many users of photoshop use the five finger discount.
ReplyDeleteI don’t know how long that hidden fee was there, but I still got hit with the cancellation fee when I cancelled my subscription right before the TOS change came through.
ReplyDeleteHad the worst time trying to cancel one of my subscriptions. It was almost impossible without getting on the phone to talk to “support”. I hope they lose millions in this lawsuit. They are the epitome of corporate greed.
ReplyDeleteIt was very difficult to change my subscription so this post rings true
ReplyDeleteLET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WOOOOO
ReplyDeleteAdobe is a scam. And Photoshop has no business being a subscription service.
ReplyDeleteNo big fan of Biden's but hey, I'll remember this come Election Day
ReplyDeleteAnything for a couple extra bucks
ReplyDeleteThis literally happened to me. It was more expensive to cancel it than to just keep paying and I ended up keeping it and then forgot about it and payed for a year of Acrobat I never used.
ReplyDeleteI fucking hate companies that highlight "Keep Subscription" and then have "Cancel Subscription" in size 2 font
ReplyDeleteI had to sign up for an Adobe acrobat subscription for work. Even though it was billed monthly, I had to commit to a full year. I was told by my boss just to expense it each month. I get laid off 3 months later, and am now stuck paying for a product that I don't need or want for the next 9 months.
ReplyDeleteAbout fucking time.
ReplyDeleteHoly shit they did this to me! I’m still locked into a contract I had no idea I agreed to when I only needed photoshop for a few months!
ReplyDelete(Raises hand) Victim here. Fk you Adobe Stock.
ReplyDeletethe us going after corporations? now thats refreshing
ReplyDeleteAffinity image products are 50% off, no subscriptions:
ReplyDeletehttps://affinity.serif.com/en-us/
Sweet can't wait for my refunds.
ReplyDeleteI had a Premiere Pro subscription for 2 years. Great product and loved the capabilities it gave me. I definitely got my money worth. But when I didn’t need the product anymore, I couldn’t get them to unsubscribe me. So I just cancelled the card that Adobe had on file. Problem solved.
ReplyDeleteI freaking hate Adobe because they basically force you into a year long “contract” when I only needed it for a semester or two. F Adobe!
ReplyDeleteThey sure did, I had a trial for creative cloud and it showed in my adobe account that I had no subscriptions which meant I couldn't cancel it. Then suddenly I'm paying for it and if I want to cancel I would have to pay the rest of the annual fees in one go.
ReplyDeleteAlso, forgot to mention, even if I were to pay for the rest of the year to cancel, the subscription cancels immediately. Shady shit
DeleteCancel your credit card.
DeleteMicrosoft 365 next. I couldn't figure out how to cancel the subscription so I just changed the card since it was apple and does it right away. They then attempted charging my card every day for about 2 weeks, 16 attempts, all declined until they finally gave up.
ReplyDeleteThis will probably fail, because the terms are there, easily accessible before you buy the subscription product.
ReplyDelete"I have to click more info" should not be too much effort for anyone.
See, I need another four years at least of giant corps being put in their place for screwing over customers.
ReplyDeleteThey might get a small fine in the end or settle. This will just come down to the old "the cost of doing business". I'm sure Adobe in the end will still have made a profit from their scams.
ReplyDeleteAfter how many years of this practice?
ReplyDeleteWhatever fine they get is just going to be a slap on the wrist. There is no "justice" in this nation.
I hope someone tells Louis Rossman about this. I need to know his opinion!!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for the settlement on this one.
ReplyDeleteA 20¢ class action payment lol
DeleteIt's always moral to pirate adobe software
ReplyDeleteI’ve been paying 2 adobe subs monthly for a long time and I have way to much shit saved in their cloud to risk canceling one - this looks like a step forward tho
ReplyDeleteOut of curiosity, have they ever come after people for just... Canceling their card to avoid cancelation fees? It's a big pain in the ass so it's not exactly an easy solution out of it. But... Has anyone tried it and gotten in trouble?
ReplyDeleteAnd this is why we sail the high seas! ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
ReplyDeleteHad to cancel from Canada, what an absolute fucking nightmare, had to jump through so many hoops, one of the most unpleasant customer service experiences I've ever been associated with and I work in the same type of job.
ReplyDeleteThis actually happened to me! I was rushing to get a sub for something and then went to cancel a week later and say the “well it’s monthly, annually. You had to pay 6 months to cancel”. Good on them - fuck Adobe
ReplyDeleteHere’s what you do if you wanna pay for adobe. I did it for years. Get a promo or student price for a year. When the year is over, tell them you cannot afford the standard subscription rate and they’ll lower it to what you paid the year before
ReplyDeleteJust here to say FUCK ADOBE.
ReplyDeleteThis! I stopped using all Adobe products years ago when they started this nonsense.
ReplyDeleteIs it a new behavior to now include the executives making the decisions? This seems new but it strikes me as brilliant to ensure that leaders are being held accountable for decisions.
ReplyDeleteUber eats does this too
ReplyDeleteI remember trying to cancel (2018-19 ish) and you had to go through 10 pages of forms all the while being spammed with increasingly good offers. Well I did like their software so eventually their offers had me curious, so I clicked the big green button. With that single click they had locked me in for something like 18 months with absolutely no warning or even asterisk or fine print.
ReplyDeleteI did manage to cancel it, but at this point I had to call an underpaid support agent in India that was pleading and bargaining with me to stay subscribed. Probably they get paid by how many they manage to turn around, by any means necessary
Fuck Adobe. My dad was somehow paying $80 a month. He was senile and paranoid so we didn't find out until after he passed and we could access his accounts.
ReplyDeleteI guarantee he couldn't have needed to Adobe in his life.
Here's my 2 cents on this...FUCK ADOBE! You should be able to pay one fee to buy and own the product. I hate the road Corporate America is taking us down...scams, fraud, false inflation, consumer deception, and just flat out being assholes to us all who pay their bills and insane C-suite salaries. Capitalism is a flawed system.
ReplyDeleteYet the fine for this won’t even come close to the profits they made from it. So it will be of zero consequence.
ReplyDeleteNo shit! Last month, I thought I was taking a monthly subscription for photoshop and lightroom that I could unsubscribe at any time.
ReplyDeleteUsed it for what I needed for a month, and when I got to cancel it, they asked me to pay 75$ to cancel my subscription. It is around 6 months of subscription fees just to cancel!
So I blocked the payment on my paypal and changed all my information in my adobe profile... fuck them !!
I just pirate their stuff and call it a day
ReplyDelete