SiriusXM Made It Too Tough For Customers To End Their Subscriptions, NY Judge Rules; Company Vows Appeal But Will Abide By FTC’s “Click-To-Cancel” Rule

Weeks after federal regulators announced a “click-to-cancel” rule for subscription businesses, a New York judge has ruled that SiriusXM made it too difficult for customers to end their service.

New York State Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank’s ruling, issued Thursday, upheld elements of a lawsuit filed against the satellite audio firm in 2023 by New York Attorney General Letitia James. In a post on X after Frank’s ruling, she wrote that the company “illegally forced people to go through a long and burdensome process to simply cancel their subscriptions. We sued SiriusXM to protect people’s wallets, and now, SiriusXM must simplify its cancellation process and stop taking advantage of New Yorkers.”

In a statement provided to Deadline on Friday, SiriusXM said it planned to appeal the ruling. The company also said the decision showed that the initial complaint filed by James, which alleged that the company “has continued to engage in repeated and persistent fraud and illegality” was untrue.

Frank, the company added, “dismissed almost all of the charges against SiriusXM, and found that SiriusXM’s policies were neither misleading nor deceptive. Most importantly, the Court ruled that SiriusXM had shown through ‘a plethora of material… that they have taken repeated steps to avoid creating such an atmosphere’ of fraud or deceit. While the Court found some technical violations of a Federal statute, it did not find that SiriusXM ever deceived anyone or committed any fraud.”

The statement also affirmed that SiriusXM will abide by the Federal Trade Commission’s new rule for a wide range of subscriptions, from streaming to pay-TV to gym memberships. The rule is due to take effect in early 2025.

“Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription,” FTC Chair Lina Khan said last month. “The FTC’s rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want.” The FTC said it acted after receiving more than 16,000 comments from the public.

SiriusXM had 33 million subscribers as of the September 30 end of the third quarter.