Both Nintendo and Playstation have agreed to change their subscription policies so that automatic renewals are turned off by default.

Nintendo says that now, once a person’s subscription to their Nintendo Switch Online service has ended it will not automatically be renewed and charge the user again unless they actively choose for it to do so. This makes it less likely that the user will be charged for a new subscription by accident.

Meanwhile, Playstation said that they will contact long-term Playstation Plus subscribers that have not used the service for an unspecified amount of time and ask if they wish to cancel their subscription. If the user decides not to cancel, they will not be charged until they use the service once again.

Nintendo and Playstation agreed to these new measures for automatic renewals following an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s competition regulator.

The CMA’s executive director of enforcement Michael Grenfell said in a statement: “As a result of our investigations, a number of changes have been made across this sector to protect customers and help tackle concerns about auto-renewing subscriptions.

“Today’s announcement, therefore, concludes our investigations into the online video gaming sector. Companies in other sectors which offer subscriptions that auto-renew should review their practices to ensure they comply with consumer protection law.”

Microsoft has previously made similar statements regarding subscriptions to Xbox. They stated they would clearly show Xbox Game Pass subscribers how to cancel their subscriptions and offer users an easy way to get a refund for the service if they are eligible for one.

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