this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2023
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AssholeDesign

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i miss the days when cancelling a subscription would just stop it charging you but you keep the service until you would have to pay

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[–] [email protected] 55 points 1 year ago (3 children)

This is usually how FREE TRIALS work, though, and always has been.

[–] [email protected] 44 points 1 year ago (2 children)

No it hasn't. Cancelling pretty much always lets you continue until you were due to be billed.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

Plus the fact that if you forget to cancel you can contact them to refund. (If they are nice)

[–] TheMauveAvenger 35 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Not when you have to put a credit card number on file. In my experience those trials almost always stay active until time has expired.

This whole thread is full of Apple apologists.

[–] dojan 7 points 1 year ago

Agree.

I generally enjoy Apple's products, I'm very happy with the stuff I have at least. Corporations and companies aren't friends, and they don't deserve to be treated as such just because they make a product you enjoy.

This kind of practise is bullshit through and through. Hell I think signing me up for a subscription as part of having a free trial is BS. I should be able to have a free trial for however long that trial period is, and then get to decide whether or not I want a full subscription. Rescinding the trial because I don't want to subscribe is garbage.

[–] LazaroFilm 0 points 1 year ago

The idea is to make you keep it for as long as possible until you hit the first pay cycle.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 year ago

"Free trial"

[–] Daisyifyoudo 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

That is how they work though 🙄

I just canceled my Apple TV and I have access to it until the next billing cycle starts. But you have to actually have a billing cycle in order to have service up until the next one...

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I think this is apple being particularly shitty because most services don't do that.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

in fact, apple forces other services to not do that but have double standards for themselves

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Pretty sure I saw it somewhere else as well. Don't remember where, but I think there was option to cancel subscription and cancell reccuring payment. Pretty sure this is so they can silently take awau the more fair option later.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

Classic Apple. Gotta pump up that Services revenue, even if by taking advantage of dark patterns everywhere.

[–] Astroturfed 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I miss when Amazon prime would refund you the remainder of the month when you cancelled.... I have no interest in being a prime member and actively avoid buying anything from Amazon. But sometimes I need something I can't find locally ASAP and giving them a quarter or two to have prime for a day was a solid option.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah doing that sounds like a stupid business practice exactly because of what you've described

[–] Astroturfed 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Paying $15 a month for "free" shipping which is also included in the price point of the products sounds like a stupid practice too. Lots of people doing it though.

[–] FlyingSquid 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If you buy enough, that fee is worth it or you will pay a lot more in shipping. Those of us in small towns without a lot of options benefit from Prime. Amazon is an evil company, but it's them or another big box store owned by another awful corporation for me. At least Amazon is convenient.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I'm in that boat. I buy enough where getting prime is worth it. I also use their prime video and Amazon photo services so I'm definitely getting my money's worth.

[–] Cruxifux 9 points 1 year ago (2 children)

It makes me so angry that I can’t cancel my subscription to audible or else I will lose all my credits.

Fuck you audible.

[–] LazaroFilm 6 points 1 year ago

Look into your local library. Mine is connected to Libby for audiobooks and it has a pretty big selection.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

But, if you spend your credits on the audiobooks you want, you don't have to lose any. I did not lose the books in my library after using them and canceling my subscription and they still exist

[–] Cruxifux 3 points 1 year ago

Yeah this conversation made me just go “fuck it” and I impulse used the ten credits I have on a bunch of books so now I don’t have standing credits anymore. It’s better this way lol

[–] TheYear2525 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I cancelled a service I was getting for free, and they stopped providing the service 😭

[–] sirfancy 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah literally what is this post lol.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I think I have only seen that on Apple. Any other examples?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I think patreon also does this which is shit imo

[–] Butt 2 points 1 year ago

YouTube TV did it to me

[–] OskarAxolotl 1 points 1 year ago

Disney+ does the same as far as I remember.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Not sure what the distinguishing line is anymore, I thought it was Free Trials but I just canceled my TV+ free trial and it’s still active through the full period. (a couple days)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Fight back with their own weapons: „hey Siri remind me on 00.00.2023 to cancel my Apple One trial“

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Or revolut, oxygen and any other bank that provides virtual/burner cards. Everyone should be using virtual or burners with any subscription service, not only does it protect you from a leak, it also let's you set a max amount and when the price goes up you won't pay it without approving it and increasing your max tx amount.

[–] bogdart 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

And also if you stop paying for 3 months, they completely delete your library. I switched to try Spotify, and when I returned, all my collections from iTunes of 10 years ago are gone forever.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Great way to make sure people who leave temporarily instead leave forever

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (2 children)
[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Not this time, it's completely expected that if you cancel a free trial that you're not interested and don't want it. It is not at all the same as cancelling a subscription that will ride out until the end of the period.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

If you're automatically charged when the free trial ends then you should absolutely be allowed to cancel a free trial so that you're not charged and keep using it until the last day it was offered to you.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

I don't want to check this one but if you need a card on file to get your free subscription like basically everywhere else then this is an attempt to let you forget about the service and charge you at least once. Amazon prime's free trial might require 50 fucking clicks to cancel but it will at least ride out the month.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Free trial implies I don't gotta attach payment to it. This is more like paying for your water bill and calling the first month free.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Hey, another thread where someone is desperate to use that word!

It’s the “play stupid games, win stupid prizes” of Lemmy

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Hey buddy, I'm desperate to do a lot of things. Lemme show you what I can do with a $50 bill...

-Attempts to pay rent and gets evicted-