Adobe ‘trapped customers’ into subscriptions, FTC says in lawsuit

[SkedAddled]

I always had a feeling about how the move to subscription software,
and not just from Adobe, would become a colossal flustercuck.

Article from The Hill

Article from Reuters

 

[Mike_d]

Annual subscriptions should be required to have a grace period or pro-rated refund. How many of you forget about a subscription until it renews for another year?

 

[joayne]

Renewing subscriptions without warning, a grace period or through snail mail, should totally be illegal.
I was just renewed today. No warning, no email, no letter, nothing. Got a bank notice. It won't happen again.

 

[Mike_d]

Subscription software should be required to provide read-only access to your data after expiration. Quickbooks Enterprise will lock you out of your data without an active subscription. So, say you switched to another accounting system or shut down the business, but still need to see transactions. You're out of luck unless you keep paying a hefty amount every year. Sure, they'll let you export your data, probably as CSV or XML, but that's nearly useless to 99% of users and they know it.

 

[gjl711]

Annual subscriptions should be required to have a grace period or pro-rated refund. How many of you forget about a subscription until it renews for another year?

I always turn off auto-renewal. Then I get the nag-mail letting me know that my sub is about to run out and can make the decision whether to keep it of look to see if there is a better deal. Norton is famous for this. Their renewal price is sometime 10x what I can get it for on the market. I'm going through the renewal process with them right now. At least they offers right out of the gate a 65% discount.

 

[Mike_d]

I always turn off auto-renewal. Then I get the nag-mail letting me know that my sub is about to run out and can make the decision whether to keep it of look to see if there is a better deal. Norton is famous for this. Their renewal price is sometime 10x what I can get it for on the market. I'm going through the renewal process with them right now. At least they offers right out of the gate a 65% discount.

You're better off without Norton.

 

[gjl711]

You're better off without Norton.

Not sure why the Norton hate but it seems to work quite well, fast scans, and reasonable priced. Only con is the nagging but they all seem to do that.

 

[Levina de Ruijter]

flustercuck

 

[Capn Jack]

Seems like they give warning now:

 

[Levina de Ruijter]

Not sure why the Norton hate but it seems to work quite well, fast scans, and reasonable priced. Only con is the nagging but they all seem to do that.

It's one of the things I hate about Topaz: when they have a new version out, they nag you and you can't switch it off. Well, you can, but no longer than a month and then it comes back again. Grrr...

 

[SkedAddled]

You're better off without Norton.

True, this.

There are real reasons for Norton hate.

I did IT work for a large regional healthcare system in the Detroit metro in the early-mid 1990s,
and they used Norton. A single "virus definition update" caused catastrophic damage to both
client and server systems. Took weeks to get rid of it after discovering it had gone systemic,
meaning that it had hijacked some critical Windows files, not having properly removed itself
with its own uninstallation scripts.

The healthcare system immediately jumped ship for another antivirus after it got sorted out.

 

[Capn Jack]

Heck- you buy a car, the car is supposed to report problems to the dealer, or maybe provide navigation to you. The car dealer collects that information and sells it to insurance companies.

Car Makers Shouldn’t Be Selling Our Driving History to Data Brokers and Insurance Companies

You accelerated multiple times on your way to Yosemite for the weekend. You braked when driving to a doctor appointment. If your car has internet capabilities, GPS tracking or OnStar, your car knows your driving history.And now we know: your car insurance carrier might know it, too.In a recent...

www.eff.org

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a60175396/connected-cars-driver-data-tracking-insurance/

 

[Mike_d]

Heck- you buy a car, the car is supposed to report problems to the dealer, or maybe provide navigation to you. The car dealer collects that information and sells it to insurance companies.

Car Makers Shouldn’t Be Selling Our Driving History to Data Brokers and Insurance Companies

You accelerated multiple times on your way to Yosemite for the weekend. You braked when driving to a doctor appointment. If your car has internet capabilities, GPS tracking or OnStar, your car knows your driving history.And now we know: your car insurance carrier might know it, too.In a recent...

www.eff.org

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a60175396/connected-cars-driver-data-tracking-insurance/

I'm happy to drive an old 4Runner that:

1) Will possibly run forever
2) Doesn't spy on me
3) Has tactile controls
4) Doesn't need a turbo
5) Doesn't stall at every stop light
6) Doesn't slam on the brakes randomly
7) Doesn't engage the parking brake automatically
8) Isn't an EV that will be sold for scrap when the battery naturally wears out or the skid plate get a scratch

I don't want my car being an expensive, disposable, appliance.

 

[SkedAddled]

Heck- you buy a car, the car is supposed to report problems to the dealer, or maybe provide navigation to you. The car dealer collects that information and sells it to insurance companies.

Not as much the independent dealer, as it is the manufacturers.
This has been building in practice in recent years, and is likely to come to a boil soon.

When I purchased a used 2013 Chevy Equinox, equipped with OnStar and XM radio, the dealer
was required to offer the services to me, replete with phone calls made from the car.
I merely flat-out told them, "I don't want my vehicle online. I have desktop computers, laptop computers
and smartphones for that. This car can never replace that." The service reps who were on the various calls went
completely silent at that, as did the dealer's guy in the car with me.

 

[Capn Jack]

Not as much the independent dealer, as it is the manufacturers.
This has been building in practice in recent years, and is likely to come to a boil soon.

You are, of course, correct. It is the manufacturers. I hope there's a tipping point soon for all of these companies.

 

[Kuma5]

The TOS for many of these providers buried on page 10,000,000 about consent to the company having control over _____________________________. LOL

Reminds me of the John Deere scenario and right to repair. Can add in other tech companies that have similar practices on the "rental" equipment you think you own when it has to connect via internet for usage. Very easy for companies to get your money but to get it back through a refund or cancellation is a major hassle.

Read up on LG's TOS for their TV's when connecting them online.

 

[SkedAddled]

You are, of course, correct. It is the manufacturers. I hope there's a tipping point soon for all of these companies.

The Mozilla Foundation and others have been scrutinizing these datasets and transfers for a few years
in rather sophisticated ways now, and have been releasing some surprisingly-detailed reports.
It's unbelievable just how MUCH data a modern car dishes out.

And It's not only cars and smartphones, but literally, EVERYTHING that goes online:
AirTags, refrigerators, thermostats, coffeemakers, routers; smarthome stuff like lightbulbs,
outlets, timers, dimmers, switches, garage door openers, curtain rods, pool/hot tub heaters,
stereo systems, ovens, faucets, landscape and security lights, sprinklers, web browsers,
software programs, operating systems, and anything & everything which is a Bluetooth
or wireless or wired connection.

Even my Logitech Harmony programmable remotes, a few years after Logitech
announced the 'complete' discontinuation of the system while also stating that
updates and functionality would continue "for as long as there is a demand,"
has moved the entire system to all of it requiring an online connection.
Such is why I believe they've made it into a data-harvesting system.

The apartment community I live in forced wireless/keypad entry-door locks on each unit
a couple of years ago, plugging their router into a power circuit I pay for.
I immediately signed in to change the codes, then unplugged the router's power
and removed the lock's wireless module after some online research.

This is the kind of dystopian turn things are heading toward.

 

[the durkarian]

I was just renewed today. No warning, no email, no letter, nothing. Got a bank notice. It won't happen again.

If you have signed up to a subscription then you have to take some responsibility for that. You must know when the subscription is due for renewal. You cannot lay all the blame at the door of the company.

 

[Capn Jack]

I'm happy to drive an old 4Runner that:

1) Will possibly run forever
2) Doesn't spy on me
3) Has tactile controls
4) Doesn't need a turbo
5) Doesn't stall at every stop light
6) Doesn't slam on the brakes randomly
7) Doesn't engage the parking brake automatically
8) Isn't an EV that will be sold for scrap when the battery naturally wears out or the skid plate get a scratch

I don't want my car being an expensive, disposable, appliance.

Which cars are do #5, 6, 7, or 8?
Some cars, especially hybrids, will turn the engine off after a period on non-motion. My experience is that stepping on the gas pedal gets them going again. In the USA, that feature can be turned off. That's not "stalling" as it is an expected operation. One can buy replacement batteries for EVs. My opinion is any car manufactured since the 1960's is an expensive, disposable, appliance.

 

[Scott M]

If you have signed up to a subscription then you have to take some responsibility for that. You must know when the subscription is due for renewal. You cannot lay all the blame at the door of the company.

Agreed. I create tasks in my calendar to cancel my subscriptions as a reminder.