GUIDE – Keeping Up With Subscription Industry Rules and Regulations
As the subscription economy continues to grow, new regulations are being introduced to protect consumer rights in response to several dark patterns some companies are practising. Considering these many drifts, recent subscription compliance updates have been established with new laws and associated rules for compliance. SaaS businesses have to review their contracts and practices to ensure they comply fully with consumer protection laws.What are the objectives and the intended effects?
- To give clarity to consumers about the financial commitment of their subscription contract at the point of purchase
- To ensure consumers are aware of ongoing payments from their subscription contracts
- To provide more accessible routes to exit unwanted subscriptions
Guidance here centers around transparency, information requests, and handling of information.
Why does this matter to your business?
Your business must comply with consumer protection law – Otherwise, you risk facing enforcement. Such enforcement may result in changing your practices, paying the money back to your customers, or even sanctions such as fines or prison. Authorities have looked at the rules of SaaS businesses and developed some fundamental principles concerning auto-renewing contracts.
What do the principles say?
BEFORE the consumer contract is concluded
Make sure your customers are able to make a fully informed choice about auto-renewal
Make sure that any price claims you make are accurate and do not mislead your customers
Confirm to the customer the key points of the auto-renewing contract
DURING the term of the consumer contract
Make sure that your customers can easily turn off auto-renewal
Remind your customers about auto-renewal in good time before it happens
Once off, auto-renewal stays off
AFTER the auto-renewal of the consumer contract
Give the ability to your customers the chance to change their mind
Make it easy for your customers to obtain a refund if they want one
Provide appropriate safeguards for customers who are no longer using the product after auto-renewal
How Nexway helps Merchants keep up with changing rules & regulations
Businesses offering automatic subscriptions should stay up to date on this rapidly evolving area of the law. When developing a subscription business, companies should provide consumers with clear information about the business renewal program, especially concerning renewal dates, cancellations, and the expiration date of any free trial.
To be fully compliant with regulations, Nexway has enabled seamless checkout and payment details to make sure that customers are able to make a fully informed choice about auto-renewal.
CHECKOUT + PAYMENT
SEAMLESS SUBSCRIPTION & AUTO-RENEWAL CONDITIONS
Subscription
Renewals will occur on the anniversary date of purchase on a monthly or annual basis (as per your initial purchase plan). This principle applies by default, with the exception of special promotions at the time of the initial purchase, for which the renewal price or the renewal period may change. These special conditions will be clearly stated during your initial purchase.
In case of annual subscription you will receive at least one email informing you of the imminent automatic renewal of your Subscription. You must ensure that NEXWAY has a valid email address to be able to notify you by sending emails, and that the nexway.com domain is not blocked by your anti-spam filtering software.
Prices
When you subscribe, you pay the introductory price for your first term. The introductory price is indicated on your offer page, in the shopping cart, and in your email receipt, along with other offer details, such as:
- Number of devices
- Duration of the first term and subsequent terms
- Renewal price for the next and following terms
Renewal price may differ from the introductory price, and may change. If it changes, we will notify you via email in advance.
Please note, discounts and offers may be available at the time of your next renewal that are not applicable to you.
How to cancel
If you cancel subscription before a renewal payment for the next subscription period made during the current subscription period, it will end on the expiration date. You won’t be charged for the next periods.
You can cancel your subscription through your My Nexway Creation account. To cancel:
- Login to my.NexwayCreation.com
- Go to your Subscription page
- Click Manage Subscription
- Select Cancel Subscription and follow the steps to get to the payment provider website
- Click the Cancel Button and the Cancel Subscription in the next step
You can also cancel your subscription by contacting Nexway Creation Customer Support.
If you cancel subscription after a renewal payment for the next subscription period made during the current subscription period, the subscription will remain active until the end of the next period.
In case you wish to cancel the renewal payment, you need to request a refund through Nexway Creation Customer Support according to the refund policy.
Nexway supports companies to take note of the steps to incorporate best practices ensuring a compliant auto-renewal process with consumer protection legislation
Having clear and fair terms will:
- Protect your business with the guarantee of a reliable recurring income
- Help prevent disputes and reputational damage
- Save time by not having to manage disputes of the recurring charges, or chargebacks
- Gain consumer trust with a total brand transparency
Kaspersky & Nexway – A lasting and prosperous collaboration
“Kaspersky has worked with Nexway for many years, and we find the platform’s strength lies in its adaptability to the legal and fiscal realities of each country of operation. We aim to supplement that flexibility with dynamic services and technologies that enable Nexway’s partners to adapt their businesses rapidly to any changes, even such drastic and quick ones”
Alexander Moiseev Kaspersky Lab – Chief Business Officer
Nexway tailored to brazilian No Zebra Network use case
“Nexway’s solidly implanted presence in the country was key to Baixaki’s choice of Nexway as a digital partner in Brazil.”
Marco Souza, CFO and COO – No Zebra Network – Baixaki
In Brazil, where stringent and complex regulations are in place, Nexway has the ability to receive end-user payments in Brazilian relas, execute currency conversion, and pay remittances in its customers’ preferred currency, including US dollars and euros. In the Brazilian states where declarations of online sales must be performed online in real-time, the Nexway platform is integrated with all required state fiscal services.
Finally, Nexway supports popular local Brazilian payment methods that include Boleto Bancario, local credit cards installment payments – ensuring frictionless checkouts in that country. Support for local credit cards is key in Brazil where offshore transactions using international credit cards incur extra taxes, collected by the banks, of up to 6.38% purchase amounts
Navigate the complexity of the payment ecosystem with an expert at your side
Transform & scale your business globally with Nexway Merchant of Record Model.When acting as the MOR in a jurisdiction, the company takes all appropriate steps to ensure it complies with local laws governing eCommerce, taxation, and user privacy.
Be compliant with Nexway
Ensuring compliance with the countless rules and regulations in the subscription can be difficult, but it’s essential that businesses do their best in order to avoid the consequences of non-compliance.
- Monitor your payments and protect your business from disputes no matter where your business is or what payment methods you accept
- Keep your business compliant with all local and global regulations as you scale and grow your business
By actively working to comply with rules and regulations, our experienced team can assist your business with all aspects of consumer law compliance, with a particular emphasis on SaaS businesses. If you have any questions regarding these new requirements, please do not hesitate Contact us today to learn more.
