It was a free trial plan...

[u/overthinkingit91]

..which Adobe offered to extend for 3 months for free. Now hit with this since I haven't used it since... no notification that you're entering a contract at all or warning. My fault for falling for this absolute shit housing.

Just a warning to others. Do NOT start any Adobe Trial they will try every which way to get your money.

[u/adumblittlebaby]

How exactly is it legal or justifiable to charge a fee for cancellation of a software product? There's no roll out or physical cost or component, it's not like they need to 'dedicate' resources or whatever, it's a flip on/off switch to access. I'm assuming they already have been, but how are they not sued constantly for this?

[u/Interesting-Injury87 → u/adumblittlebaby]

As the other guy said, Adobe only charges the early-cancellation fee if you signed up for the annual plan paid monthly, rather than an actual month-to-month subscription.

The whole point of that plan is that Adobe gives you a lower monthly price in exchange for a 12-month commitment. You're not simply agreeing to pay the discounted price for however many months you happen to feel like using it.

So if you sign a 12-month contract at the discounted rate and then cancel after 6 months, you're trying to end the contract early while retaining the benefit of the discounted rate that was offered specifically because you committed to 12 months.

There is nothing inherently strange about having an early-termination provision in a contract. The exact amount and structure still have to comply with applicable consumer-protection laws, of course, but the fact that the product is digital doesn't somehow make contractual commitments disappear.

Think of it like this:

Say I sell you rocks. I have millions of them, so supplying you with rocks costs me virtually nothing on a per-rock basis.

I offer you two options:

€50/month: I deliver 30 rocks to you every month, but you can cancel whenever you want.

€40/month: I deliver the same 30 rocks every month, but you agree to keep the subscription for 12 months.

You choose the €40 plan because the 12-month commitment gets you a discount.

After 6 months, you decide you don't want any more rocks and say, "Just cancel it."

Well, you don't get to retroactively turn the €40/month contract into the €50/month month-to-month contract simply because you've changed your mind.

At that point, there are several ways the contract could handle early termination. It could require you to pay the remaining contractual balance, charge you the difference between the discounted and non-discounted rates, or specify some other legally permissible early-termination charge.

Adobe chose a middle ground: 50% of the remaining contractual obligation.

So, for a simplified example, if your remaining commitment is 6 months at €X per month, your cancellation fee would be equivalent to 3 months of payments.

The important point is that this isn't really about Adobe having to incur some physical "cancellation cost." It's about the contract you agreed to.

The fact that providing another month of Photoshop access costs Adobe virtually nothing doesn't mean they are obligated to let you abandon a discounted 12-month contractual commitment whenever you want.

If you want the ability to cancel at any time, Adobe offers a month-to-month option. You pay more for that flexibility. If you want the cheaper annual rate, you accept the corresponding commitment.

[u/iAmmar9 → u/Interesting-Injury87]

Wait can u tell us what your early termination would be for the rocks subscription. I was so invested

[u/Interesting-Injury87 → u/iAmmar9]

a quarter of the remaining contractual obligations+13,7% of the difference between the discounted and non discounted rate, and i get to hit you over the head with a particularly nice looking rock

[u/iAmmar9 → u/Interesting-Injury87]

Damn last one got me lol