FTC says MoviePass “one movie per day” promise was a double feature of deception

As the fast-talking talent scout said in a hundred Hollywood classics, “I’m gonna put you in the movies!” MoviePass promised to put consumers in the movies – or at least in movie theaters – with its $9.95 per month “one movie per day” subscription plan. A proposed settlement outlines three concerns the FTC had with the company’s practices: 1) illegal tactics that MoviePass employed to block subscribers from using the service as advertised; 2) violations of the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA); and 3) MoviePass’s failure to take reasonable steps to secure subscribers’ personal information.

When MoviePass advertised “Unlimited movies for only $9.95/month” and “ANY MOVIE ANY THEATER ANY DAY. Only $9.95 per month,” more than three million film buffs put down the popcorn and picked up their credit cards to enroll. But the FTC says MoviePass implemented three roadblocks to prevent subscribers from using the service as advertised.

Roadblock #1 was the company’s “password disruption” policy. According to the complaint, MoviePass invalidated the passwords of the 75,000 subscribers who used the service most often while falsely claiming that the company had “detected suspicious activity or potential fraud” on their accounts. To reinstate their accounts, the password disruption program required those subscribers to maneuver through an obstacle course worthy of a blockbuster action flick – a process complicated by the fact that MoviePass’s password reset process often failed.

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