VPN Provider Defends Decision to Cancel Long-Term Subscriptions

By Netvora Tech News

VPN Secure, a virtual private network (VPN) provider, is standing by its decision to cancel long-term subscription agreements. The company has faced backlash from numerous users who received emails informing them that their lifetime subscriptions were being terminated. According to the current owners, who acquired the VPN service from another party in 2023, they were unaware of the existence of subscribers with long-term agreements.

The owners claim that VPN Secure generated $6,000 per month in recurring revenue, with hosting costs of $4,000 per month. They also assert that more than 90% of the long-term subscribers paid for their subscriptions over a decade ago.

Long-Term Subscriptions Were Sold Over a Longer Period

According to the owners, the long-term subscriptions were only sold between 2015 and 2017. However, Ars Technica reports that the subscriptions remained available until 2022. The owners admit that they should have conducted more thorough research, but they are standing by their decision to cancel the long-term contracts.

The company was sold through an "asset-only" deal, which excluded prior agreements. As a result, those contracts were no longer valid after the acquisition.

Users Unaware of Changes

The owners of VPN Secure are aware that users may be upset by the decision to cancel their long-term subscriptions. However, they argue that it is unrealistic to expect the company to support a legacy group of thousands of users who paid for their subscriptions over a decade ago without additional funding or external financing.

The owners claim that the long-term subscribers were aware of the terms of their agreements and had ample opportunity to terminate their subscriptions or upgrade to a new plan.
The company is offering affected users a 30-day notice period and a pro-rata refund for any remaining subscription period.

VPN Secure maintains that its decision to cancel long-term subscriptions is fair and reasonable, given the company's current financial situation and the terms of the "asset-only" deal.