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I am more likely to sign up for something I can cancel. Also, if I can trial it and it doesn't work, I can leave. If it sucks and I can't leave I am going to be

I am more likely to sign up for something I can cancel. Also, if I can trial it and it doesn't work, I can leave. If it sucks and I can't leave I am going to be horribly pissed. A really good example is https://www.verizon.com/plans/free-trial/ https://www.verizon.com/plans/free-trial/ I was testing between verizon and mint for my physical location. For whatever reason, VZ was underperforming, so when the trial expired, I left a happy temporary customer. I have since recommended it to others, knowing that they aren't going to get locked in. Being able to cancel actually make more happy customers, not less. It is only the enshitified mba run companies that trap customers that exhibit the parasitic practice of trapping customers into long contracts, confusing bills and impossible to cancel w/o burning your payment account number. I actually would sign up for the local gym that just went under in my neighborhood, but I knew I would never be able to cancel, so I skipped it.

photonthug 2y ago
Verizon has a different strategy for this type of thing but is still in the 'enshitified mba-run companies' category. Charge like $400 for a 5g internet device that's worth like $12 and built on OSS anyway (+ probably charge it again if the device isn't returned). Device only has only a power-button and is designed to be preconfigured, but isn't, so that they can make the customer call and navigate 6+ hours of tech support. This is so frustrating that it might easily take a month to do it if you want to keep your sanity.. which means they can bill an extra month providing no service at all, and if you were counting on a trial period it's probably over. The trial cancelation might be easy, but really, that matters most when there's actually significant competition among providers. In the end it's service that's easily twice as expensive and half as good as what most of the civilized world enjoys. There's what, like 10k hours in a year, half a million hours in a lifetime? So rather than "make it easy to cancel" laws what we really need is some general recognition of the fact that deliberately stealing 1 hour of time from half a million people is roughly equivalent to murdering 1 person. Everyone knows that class actions for a $2 dollar check are a joke. If your business is practically essential so that you're basically guaranteed customers, and your business practices deliberately add friction that cost people time+money, then you're guilty of violence as well as theft.
- sitkack 2y ago
  > general recognition of the fact that deliberately stealing 1 hour of time from half a million people is roughly equivalent to murdering 1 person. Agreed!
  - xp84 2y ago
    Biggest problem with the corporate personhood stuff is how a corporation can’t be convicted of crimes and put in prison. Which encourages behavior that has that type of effect. Even if it were considered like a murder there’s no one to prosecute. Companies would behave differently if flagrant abuse of customers might subject the CEO or the board to prison.

photonthug 2y ago

Verizon has a different strategy for this type of thing but is still in the 'enshitified mba-run companies' category. Charge like $400 for a 5g internet device that's worth like $12 and built on OSS anyway (+ probably charge it again if the device isn't returned). Device only has only a power-button and is designed to be preconfigured, but isn't, so that they can make the customer call and navigate 6+ hours of tech support. This is so frustrating that it might easily take a month to do it if you want to keep your sanity.. which means they can bill an extra month providing no service at all, and if you were counting on a trial period it's probably over. The trial cancelation might be easy, but really, that matters most when there's actually significant competition among providers. In the end it's service that's easily twice as expensive and half as good as what most of the civilized world enjoys. There's what, like 10k hours in a year, half a million hours in a lifetime? So rather than "make it easy to cancel" laws what we really need is some general recognition of the fact that deliberately stealing 1 hour of time from half a million people is roughly equivalent to murdering 1 person. Everyone knows that class actions for a $2 dollar check are a joke. If your business is practically essential so that you're basically guaranteed customers, and your business practices deliberately add friction that cost people time+money, then you're guilty of violence as well as theft.

sitkack 2y ago
> general recognition of the fact that deliberately stealing 1 hour of time from half a million people is roughly equivalent to murdering 1 person. Agreed!
- xp84 2y ago
  Biggest problem with the corporate personhood stuff is how a corporation can’t be convicted of crimes and put in prison. Which encourages behavior that has that type of effect. Even if it were considered like a murder there’s no one to prosecute. Companies would behave differently if flagrant abuse of customers might subject the CEO or the board to prison.