Cancelling streaming TV subscriptions is about to get easier

If you’re sick of having to interact with chatbots or even pick up the phone to cancel a cable or streaming TV subscription, the FTC’s got your back. 

The Federal Trade Commission has enacted a new rule directing businesses to make it easier to cancel recurring subscriptions, including those offered by gyms, food delivery services, and—yes—cable and streaming TV operators. 

A provision to the FTC’s existing Negative Option Rule from 1973, the so-called “click-to-cancel” rule mandates that companies allow consumers to cancel their subscriptions using essentially the same steps they followed when they first signed up.   

“Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription,” Commission Chair Lina M. Khan said in a statement. “The FTC’s rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want.” 

The “click-to-cancel” rule, which was initially proposed more than a year ago, takes aim at companies and services that throw up roadblocks in front of the “cancel” button.  

In one notorious case, DirecTV Stream forced many of its users to call customer service or go into an online chat to cancel their subscriptions.   

As Reuters notes, not every point in the “click-to-cancel” proposal made it into the final rule. For example, a provision that would have required businesses to annually remind customers of their auto-renewing subscriptions was nixed. 

Another proposal that didn’t make the cut focused on those last-minute discounts designed to entice subscribers to stick around a bit longer. 

As originally proposed, the “click-to-cancel” rule would have mandated that customers get the option to skip the offers and head immediately to the “cancel” button, but the ratified rule drops that requirement. 

Companies that violate the rule would be subject to “redress” as well as civil penalties, the FTC said.