Pocket Casts upsets loyal customers as it switches lifetime purchases to three-year plans

Updated September 18, 2022: Pocket Casts has changed its plan and volition at present provide lifetime access to Pocket Casts Plus to all customers that previously purchased the desktop or web app. The original story follows.

Pocket Casts recently switched its business model by making its mobile apps complimentary and charging a subscription to "Pocket Casts Plus" which allows users to employ the service on desktops and the web. The move has led to heavy criticism and feedback from users who feel that the makers of Pocket Casts misled them and committed a bait and switch.

Pocket Casts' switch to a subscription model is normal in the app industry, only it does seem to go against Pocket Casts previous marketing efforts. When you purchased Pocket Casts earlier, its webpage stated, "No monthly subscriptions or freemium hoo-ha. Showtime your xiv day trial now. If you similar what you lot come across, we'll enquire you for $nine. Just one time." Now, Pocket Casts users who purchased the app for $9 will receive a free iii-year subscription to Pocket Casts Plus.

Many users on Reddit have shared frustration for not receiving a lifetime plan. Pocket Casts did non specifically use the word "lifetime" but the utilise of phrases "just in one case," "no monthly subscriptions or freemium hoo-ha" implies that a purchase work perpetually without requiring additional payment.

Some other user pointed out on Reddit that Pocket Casts specifically stated that they wouldn't switch to a freemium model.

Nosotros don't do freemium. No VC funding. No crazy. Nosotros love podcasts and we've congenital the web player that we want to utilise. Nosotros've priced it at a bespeak where we'll stick around to go on it upward to date. You tin expect support, features and many more awesome things in the future.

A client that will be referred to every bit "Y" shared an electronic mail exchange with Pocket Casts customer back up. Y outlined many of the same complaints shared by other users online and stated

At this betoken, I consider y'all accept a legal binding delivery to fulfill this purchase, for as long as your visitor is operating the service. Removing access to the spider web player after a 3-twelvemonth period, in clear violation of the initial understanding, is a revocation of my purchase. Unless you tin guarantee a lifetime admission to the web role player service, I thereby ask for a full $nine (or €9.60) refund of my purchase.

Russell Ivanovic, Chief Product Officer at Pocket Casts, responded:

Yous still take access until the end of 2022. If you feel at that fourth dimension that yous yet shouldn't pay for a service that is costing us money to run (and would be shut down otherwise) please attain out and we'll run into what we can do.

After being pushed by Y to refund the purchase, Ivanovic responded:

I tin can't refund a Paypal buy from two years agone. Their refunds don't piece of work later on 6 months.

To be clear you have no legal standing hither whatsoever, I'm just trying to help yous out. We are under no obligation whatsover (sic) to give y'all a refund.

Y's sentiments have been echoed around the web, especially on the Pocket Casts subreddit. Ivanovic'south response does not seem to indicate that Pocket Casts plans to contrary its opinion or to grandfather in customers who previously purchased the app.

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