US FTC sues Uber over allegedly deceptive practices in subscription service

Time of India

22-04-2025

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit against Uber, accusing the company of "deceptive billing and cancellation practices" related to its Uber One premium service.
The FTC claims Uber violated both the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act by misleading users about the service, making it difficult to cancel subscriptions, and charging customers without their consent.
The FTC stated that users were required to navigate "as many as 23 screens and take as many as 32 actions to cancel", according to a report by The New York Times.
The lawsuit also alleges that Uber falsely promised users monthly savings of $25 without accounting for subscription fees, with some being charged even before their free trial ended.
This marks the first major tech lawsuit filed by the FTC since President
Donald Trump
returned to office.
Uber has denied the accusations, with spokesperson Noah Edwardsen stating: "We are disappointed that the FTC chose to move forward with this action, but are confident that the courts will agree with what we already know: Uber One's sign-up and cancellation processes are clear, simple, and follow the letter and spirit of the law."
The case adds to the growing list of legal challenges faced by tech giants. The FTC and Department of Justice have ramped up scrutiny of companies such as Google, Meta, Amazon, and Apple.
In another case, the Justice Department is seeking to break up Google by forcing it to divest Chrome, arguing that the browser feeds Google's search dominance. The department argued that Google used exclusionary agreements, including paying Apple billions annually to remain the default search engine on iPhones, allegedly shutting out competitors.
Google and Meta have also faced monopoly allegations. US District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that Google engaged in anticompetitive behaviour to secure monopoly power in the open-web display ad server market.
The FTC has similarly accused Meta of acquiring rivals such as Instagram and WhatsApp to dominate social media, arguing that the company employed a "buy-or-bury" strategy to eliminate emerging competition.
Despite ongoing efforts by Silicon Valley leaders to strengthen ties with the Trump administration, regulators seem to be taking an increasingly hardline stance. Notably, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and the company itself each contributed $1 million to Trump's inauguration, alongside other industry leaders such as Meta and Amazon.