241
YSK: How to protect yourself against Etsy’s plan to prevent class action lawsuits
(indiesellersguild.org)
Crazy that a corporate TOS can take away your legal rights like that.
In 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a study showing that arbitration almost always benefits the corporation at the expense of the consumer. In 2017, they almost succeeded in passing a law to prevent class-action waivers in arbitration agreements for financial service corporations. Most mandatory arbitration agreements have held up in court, but there are also cases where courts have found these agreements “unconscionable”.
Today, corporations are trying to further shield themselves from accountability by quietly burying opt-out clauses into their lengthy arbitration agreements.
Sounds like Etsy is as well in the sprial of Enshittification: They lured in the customers with great deals on personal/handworked products, they lured in more seller by offering them the customer base while broaden the products they can offer (leaving behind the initial userbase going straight to a general marketplace). Now that they are both in, they changed the rules and make it just shitty enough that people do not quit, but the revenue is maximized. Now shutting down future risk by Class Action to protect the profits. Here is a great 29 Minute Podcast with Cory Doctorow explaining this shift that platforms are currently making.>>>