OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna says digital media provider RealNetworks is going to pay a $2.4 million settlement because of free trial subscriptions that resulted in unwanted monthly charges to customers.
McKenna said that the lawsuit and settlement was filed Thursday in King County Superior Court in Seattle. He says that over the past seven years, his office and the Better Business Bureau received more than 500 complaints against RealNetworks from customers from across the country alleging charges on their credit cards for subscriptions for television, sports or game content that they never ordered.
McKenna says that “deceptive” pre-checked boxes misled customers into signing up for free trials that converted into paid subscriptions.
The company will pay $2 million in restitution to customers and $400,000 in attorney’s fees.
