FTC votes to delay enforcement of ‘click to cancel’ rule

The Federal Trade Commission voted Friday to delay enforcement of the Negative Option Rule – known widely as the “click-to-cancel” rule requiring companies to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to sign up. The Commission vote to postpone the compliance deadline was 3-0. In the rulemaking, various commenters expressed concern that, “given the complexities” of these provisions, it would take a substantial amount of time to come into compliance. As a result, the Commission deferred enforcement of some provisions until May 14, 2025. “Having conducted a fresh assessment of the burdens that forcing compliance by this date would impose, the Commission has determined that the original deferral period insufficiently accounted for the complexity of compliance,” the FTC said. The Fly notes that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a trade group representing major cable and internet providers such as Charter Communications (CHTR), Comcast (CMCSK) (CMCSA), and media companies like Disney Entertainment (DIS) and Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) are among those suing to block the rule.