The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says it has “secured improvements” for players on Microsoft’s Xbox online platform, following concerns about the tech giant’s use of auto-renewing subscriptions for gaming services.
“Gamers need to be given clear and timely information to make informed choices when signing up for auto-renewing memberships and subscriptions,” Michael Grenfell, CMA’s director of enforcement, said in an announcement. “We are therefore pleased that Microsoft has given the CMA these formal undertakings to improve the fairness of their practices and protect consumers, and will be offering refunds to certain customers.”
According to the CMA, the changes relate to Microsoft’s automatic renewal of subscriptions to services like Microsoft’s Xbox Live Gold and Game Pass.
The CMA said its investigation learned there were concerns about whether it was upfront that these subscriptions would automatically renew and whether consumers were aware they were paying for services they were no longer using.
The authority said the improvements Microsoft agreed to include providing more transparent, upfront information about auto-renewals: that subscriptions will renew unless the customers opt out, how much it will cost, and how consumers can get a refund following an accidental renewal.
In addition, Microsoft will contact customers on recurring 12-month contracts to give them the option to close their contract and get a pro-rata refund. The company will also contact customers who haven’t used their memberships in a while but are still paying.
The company will remind those customers how to stop payments. If they continue not using their memberships, Microsoft will stop taking payments. Finally, Microsoft agreed to provide clearer notifications about price increase, making sure customers know how to turn off auto-renewal if they don’t wish to pay the higher price.
Read more: NVIDIA, Arm Tell UK Competition Watchdog Why It Should Approve Their Deal
Earlier this month, the CMA said it was considering blocking Silicon Valley chip maker NVIDIA’s plan to purchase the United Kingdom chip designer Arm for $40 billion.
The watchdog group said would investigate the deal’s impact on competition in the U.K., looking at whether, following the takeover, Arm has reason to withdraw, hike prices or lower the quality of its IP licensing services to NVIDIA’s rivals.
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