A Rome court has ruled that the price hikes Netflix imposed on subscribers in Italy in 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2024 were unlawful. The court ordered Netflix to refund affected customers by up to 500 euros (about $576), depending on their plan.
The lawsuit was brought by Italian consumer advocacy group Movimento Consumatori, which alleged that the price hikes violate the Consumer Code, Italian legislation that aims to protect consumer rights. The Consumer Code says it’s unlawful for a “professional to unilaterally modify the clauses of the contract, or the characteristics of the product or service to be provided, without a justified reason indicated in the contract itself,” according to a Google-provided translation.
The court’s April 1 ruling determined that Netflix’s contracts were required to explain in advance why prices or other terms might change in the future.
Because the price hikes were found to be imposed without providing customers with valid justifications, the court ruled that the new prices are invalid and ordered Netflix to refund affected subscribers. This comes despite Netflix reportedly providing a 30-day advance notice of the higher fees and allowing customers to cancel their subscriptions to avoid price hikes.
In a joint statement provided by Movimento Consumatori, assisting attorneys Paolo Fiorio and Corrado Pinna said, per a Google-provided translation:
For the premium plan, the unlawful increases applied in 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2024 currently amount to a total of €8 per month, while for the standard plan, the increases currently amount to a total of €4 per month. A premium customer who has paid Netflix continuously from 2017 to today is entitled to a refund of approximately €500, while a standard customer is entitled to a refund of approximately 250 euros. The unlawful increases also affect the basic plan, which saw a 2-euro increase in October 2024.
The court gave Netflix 90 days to inform millions of current and former customers via email, mail, its website, and Italian newspapers of their right to refunds or else face a penalty of 700 euros per day, Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore reported today. In August, AGCOM, Italy’s communications authority, said that Netflix had 8.3 million unique users in Q1 2025. In today’s announcement, Movimento Consumatori said Netflix is estimated to have had 5.4 million customers in October.
Per Italian law, price increases that Netflix has issued or will issue beyond April 2025 are legal. At that time, Netflix adjusted its terms to state that contract terms could one day change due to technological, security, or regulatory needs, to clarify clauses, or to provide changes to the service, Il Sole 24 Ore reported.
Price reduction demand
In its announcement, Movimento Consumatori said, per a Google translation, that Netflix was ordered to “reduce the prices of its current subscriptions by an amount equal to the unlawful increases.”
“For example, a premium customer who activated the subscription in 2017 and who today pays €19.99 is entitled to the same service for €11.99, while a standard customer who pays €13.99 will have to pay €9.99,” the advocacy group said.
Should Netflix fail to reduce prices and refund customers, Movimento Consumatori will launch a class-action lawsuit, Alessandro Mostaccio, the group’s president, said in a statement.
Netflix appealing
In a statement, a Netflix spokesperson said that Netflix is appealing the ruling, Il Sole 24 Ore reported.
“We take consumer rights very seriously and believe our terms and conditions have always been in line with Italian law and practice,” the spokesperson said.
In the meantime, the ruling represents a large and novel win for the many streaming subscribers who believe prices have gotten out of hand. Although originally pitched as cheaper, simpler alternatives to cable, streaming services have seen subscription prices balloon. The increases have come, in some cases, amid reduced features and content quality and more ads.
As customers continue to shift toward streaming over broadcast TV, unchecked price hikes are increasingly problematic. While this month’s ruling only affects Italian customers, it illustrates the dissatisfaction that streaming subscribers worldwide have with providers’ prices.
The ruling could also open the door to further legislation against Netflix or other streaming services, especially in the European Union, over previous pricing changes.
