Adobe to pay $75 million to resolve U.S. lawsuit over fees, subscription cancellations

Adobe said on Friday it will pay $75 million to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit accusing the Photoshop and Acrobat maker of harming consumers by concealing hefty termination fees and making it difficult to cancel subscriptions.

The San Jose, California-based company said it will also provide $75 million of free services to customers, in addition to making the $75 million payment to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Court approval is required, and Adobe denied wrongdoing in agreeing to settle.

In a June 2024 complaint, the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission accused Adobe of burying termination fees that could reach hundreds of dollars in the fine print for its “annual paid monthly” subscription plan, or behind textboxes and hyperlinks.

They also said Adobe forced subscribers who wanted to cancel online to wade through numerous pages, and subscribers who wanted to cancel by phone to repeat themselves to multiple representatives and encounter “resistance and delay” from them.