Many subscribers in Italy are now set to receive a substantial refund from Netflix. A court has ruled that several of the company's price hikes between 2017 and 2024 were illegal. This could result in refunds of up to 500 euros per user.
The reason? Netflix is deemed, according to Ars Technica, to have raised prices without clearly justifying why in its terms of service. And that's a major no-no under Italian consumer law. The court argues that the terms gave Netflix free rein to change prices without transparency, which is thus considered directly unfair.
"For the premium plan, the unlawful increases applied in 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2024 currently amount to a total of €8 per month, while for the standard plan, the increases currently amount to a total of €4 per month. A premium customer who has paid Netflix continuously from 2017 to today is entitled to a refund of approximately €500, while a standard customer is entitled to a refund of approximately 250 euros. The unlawful increases also affect the basic plan, which saw a 2-euro increase in October 2024"
The result is that long-time subscribers, especially those on the Premium tier, can look forward to a refund of up to 500 euros. And it doesn't stop there, as Netflix must also lower its current prices. The streaming giant isn't exactly thrilled about this and has already announced plans to appeal the decision.
Similar legal proceedings have also begun to emerge in other European countries, so this could be the start of something bigger and a domino effect for the entire streaming industry.
What do you think about this, right or wrong?