US sues Adobe over ‘deceptive’ subscriptions too difficult to cancel

The US government is suing Adobe for allegedly hiding high fees and making it difficult to cancel a subscription. In the complaint filed Monday, the Justice Department claims Adobe “harmed consumers by enrolling them in its most lucrative default subscription plan without clearly disclosing material terms of the plan.”

The lawsuit alleges that Adobe “hides” the terms of its paid annual monthly plan in “the fine print and behind optional text boxes and hyperlinks.” In doing so, the company fails to properly disclose early termination fees incurred in the event of a cancellation “which can amount to hundreds of dollars,” the complaint states.

When customers attempt to cancel, the DOJ alleges that Adobe requires them to go through an “onerous and complicated” cancellation process that involves navigating through multiple web pages and pop-ups. It would then “ambush” customers by charging them early termination fees, which could discourage them from canceling.

Customers face similar obstacles when trying to cancel their subscriptions over the phone or via live chats, the DOJ claims. The complaint claims that “subscribers have had their calls or chats interrupted or disconnected and have had to re-explain the reason for their call when they reconnect.” The lawsuit alleges that these practices violate federal laws designed to protect consumers.

The lawsuit also targets Adobe executives Maninder Sawhney, senior vice president of digital marketing and sales, and David Wadhwani, president of the company’s digital media business. The complaint states that the two executives “directed, controlled, had the authority to control, or participated in the acts and practices of Adobe.” Adobe did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Adobe trapped its customers into year-long subscriptions through hidden early termination fees and numerous barriers to cancellation,” Samuel Levine, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement . “Americans are tired of companies hiding the ball when signing up for a subscription, then throwing up roadblocks when trying to cancel.” The federal government began investigating Adobe’s cancellation practices late last year.

In 2012, Adobe moved from selling its creative software for lifetime use to charging users a monthly or annual subscription to its suite of products, including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and others. The company’s subscription model has long frustrated creatives, who are often forced to remain subscribed to Adobe to continue doing their work. Earlier this month, Adobe’s new terms of service sparked backlash after some interpreted the move as an opportunity to train its AI on user art.