One-Click Comcast Canceling Is a Bill That Needs to Pass

“Ryan’s Law” may hit ballots in California this year

By The Editors
March 31, 2016 9:00 am

You may not recognize the name Ryan Block, but you know the man and you have felt his pain.

Block is the brave soul who went through customer-service hell while trying to cancel his Comcast subscription during a phone call that went viral last year after he uploaded it to SoundCloud in July of 2014. Now one state lawmaker is out to help him claim his revenge on big cable.

Earlier this week, Los Angeles Assemblyman Mike Gatto introduced a bill — already dubbed “Ryan’s Law” — that would allow Golden Staters to cancel their Internet or cable services online with a single mouse click. Gatto referenced the infamous call in a statement about the bill, and Block himself chimed in to say he was “excited” by the prospect of AB 2867 passing in Sacramento.

“It just makes sense, that if you are able to sign up for a service online, you should also be able to cancel it the same way,” Gatto said. “There are times when we, as the legislature, need to step in to protect consumers and make people’s lives a little easier. This is one of those times.”

Score one for the little guy.

The InsideHook Newsletter.

News, advice and insights for the most interesting person in the room.