Adobe fines

Turns out that a software company who forced subscriptions because they couldn’t convince people to buy paid upgrades is now facing huge fines for shady business practices related to cancelling said subscriptions. This is a shock. ^NOT.

Apple Insider tells that Adobe faces big fines from FTC over difficult subscription cancellation:

Adobe could face hefty fines related to its overly difficult and costly subscription cancellation practices due to an ongoing Federal Trade Commission Probe.

On its quarterly financial call, Adobe told investors it has been cooperating with FTC staff since June 2022. The FTC believes Adobe may violate the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act.

Turns out for 18 months they have been made aware. Did they change practices in the mean time?

Adobe asserts that it believes its practices comply with the law.

Adobe: “We can’t do no wrong.”

The Register says that Adobe warns it may face massive fines for subscription cancellation practices:

Adobe’s results were strong. The fourth quarter saw $5.05 billion of revenue, 12 percent year-over-year growth and the first time Adobe has reached the $5 billion mark in a single quarter. Quarterly net income reached almost $1.5 billion. Full year revenue was $19.4 billion, up ten percent year-over-year, and net profit reached $5.4 billion.

I guess record profit justify the shady practices. They are not hurting.

Accounts of Adobe’s unsubscribe process suggest it may sometimes attempt to charge a substantial cancellation fee, but questioning the legality of such charges quickly sees the idea abandoned.

So if they don’t even argue when customers push back on cancelling fees that probably mean something. I don’t know. That it is illegal?

There is a lot to say, but software subscriptions like Adobe’s do not benefit the users. It actually take away because all the incentive to improve the product are gone, but the recurring cost is here. They could figure out how to convince people to upgrade before. This hasn’t changed, they just no longer need to since the “cloud” lock-in is key.

And I always thought that Adobe buying Figma was just a match made in heaven given Figma’s outstanding shady billing practices. A merger that the EU is still questioning.