Disney+ restrictions: Consumer groups set deadline for compensation

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Disney should compensate Disney+ Premium customers in Italy, Belgium and Portugal for restrictions on their Premium subscriptions. That’s what consumer group Euroconsumers and three national member organizations are demanding in a formal letter to the company. According to a statement from the consumer groups, Disney has 14 calendar days from receipt of the letter to comply with their demands.

Along with Euroconsumers, the letter is backed by Italy’s Altroconsumo, Belgium’s Testachats/Testaankoop and Portugal’s DECO PROteste. The organizations sent it to Disney on Tuesday, Oct. 6, Euroconsumers said. The issue is missing features such as HDR, which Disney had to remove because of patent lawsuits filed by InterDigital.

Price cuts demanded

The consumer groups want Disney to lower the monthly price for all affected Premium subscribers in the three countries, both existing and new customers. Disney should also credit subscribers at least 5 euros per month for the entire period during which features were missing. In addition, Disney must clearly inform everyone affected about what happened, who was affected and for how long, and what claims they can make.

Euroconsumers cites EU consumer law. Under the Digital Content Directive, a patent dispute does not release Disney from its obligation to provide the service it sold. Customers are therefore entitled to an appropriate price reduction. If Disney made a significant change to the service, it also had to inform customers clearly and allow them to cancel for free. Continuing to advertise “4K UHD & HDR” could be misleading under the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.

“Patent disputes cannot come at the expense of consumers' rights”, says Marco Scialdone, who oversees litigation at Euroconsumers. Under EU law, subscribers are entitled to appropriate remedies, not just refunds they have to chase down.

Full price without HDR

The restrictions stem from a patent dispute between Disney and InterDigital. After a ruling by the Munich Regional Court, Disney initially removed Dolby Vision from its offering. Then, following an order from the Düsseldorf Local Division of the Unified Patent Court, which applies in 11 EU countries, 4K and HDR also disappeared at the end of July. On affected devices, Premium subscribers could watch content only in Full HD with SDR.

In early August, Disney restored 4K using an alternative technology on some devices, but HDR is still missing. According to Euroconsumers, Disney charged the full Premium price throughout, about 16 euros per month in Italy, and continued to advertise “4K UHD & HDR”. Disney had offered affected subscribers a partial refund on request or the option to cancel their subscription within 30 days. In Germany, too, Disney granted Premium customers a special right to cancel. Euroconsumers says that isn’t enough because customers have to claim the refund themselves. Disney should handle the matter itself, the consumer groups say.

Euroconsumers is an association of national consumer organizations based in Brussels. According to the group, it has six member organizations in Italy, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Brazil, representing more than 7 million people combined. Euroconsumers has no German member organization, and Germany’s consumer advice centers are not part of the association.

Complaint to EU authorities

In Germany, the Lower Saxony Consumer Center has advised Premium customers to seek a partial refund of their subscription price since Dolby Vision was removed. It provides a template for doing so.

If Disney lets the deadline pass, the organizations plan to file a complaint with the EU’s Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network and the relevant national authorities. Consumer protection agencies in EU countries use the network to coordinate on cross-border violations. Euroconsumers plans to seek fines of up to 4% of Disney’s annual revenue in the affected countries.

(dahe)