Subscription trap: Five days free, then it gets expensive. Hundreds of movie streaming services send dubious invoices.
Even if they change their name, they all have the same design: alleged movie streaming sites lure users into a subscription trap. Our cooperation partner Checked4you helps with tips and sample letters.
the essentials in brief
- They advertise alleged free streams of cinema films; interested parties must register for this.
- Attention, subscription trap: The small print states that high fees would be charged after five free days.
- We explain why we think you don't have to pay and give you a sample text with which you can defend yourself.
Why pay for movies when you can get them for free on the internet?! If you start looking for relevant sites with such a plan, you might end up on voxstream. de or one of the other 200+ pages listed at the end of the text. Except for the logo, they all look the same. They entice you with numerous movies that you can supposedly watch legally. But I have to register you first.
The subscription trap
To register, you should provide your name, an email address and a password and then be able to watch films straight away. According to the site operators, by clicking on “Register” you already become a member. The first five days cost nothing, after that you have to pay - if you don't delete your account in time.
It is often the case that the information about the obligation to pay can only be found in the terms of use in English. Then the case is clear: you don't have to pay! You can read the reasons in the box below.
The “Buy” button
We constantly receive complaints from consumer advice centers about these alleged streaming portals. Some consumers report that there was no button that clearly indicated costs. If we then look at the page, there is both a button and a reference to the specific costs.
[mk_ad]
This raises the suspicion that the operators may install the button solution later or make the pages look different depending on how they are accessed - i.e. depending on whether you accessed them directly or got there via a search engine. Whether this is the case can only be proven with screenshots that you took when registering. But even if the button was there, we can say: you don't necessarily have to pay (see box below)!
Registration is not confirmed
After you have concluded a contract, reputable site operators will send you a confirmation by email in which they list the terms and conditions of the contract. At this point at the latest you should find out that you have to pay money five days after your registration. But no such email comes.
Technical problems
Anyone who wants to start streaming immediately after registering is often stuck. Because instead of the films and series advertised at the beginning, there are often error messages.
“Lawyers” on YouTube
The operators of the alleged streaming sites don't just limit themselves to emails with payment requests or debt collection threats. There are even videos on YouTube in which supposed lawyers explain that you definitely have to pay. We can only turn our noses up at these videos too.
For example, there is a certain Michael Plember from a Berlin media law firm who claims that a client has an invoice from felixkino. com contacted him and after checking the website he stated that this invoice had to be paid. By the way, the same man calls himself Thomas Fischer in another video. His topic is the same: bills from MeinKinoWelt. com supposedly have to be paid.
Another man doesn't give his name at all, but also tells the same thing - each tailored to the relevant website. What is noticeable about the clips is that the comment function has usually been deactivated, the YouTube channels used have not existed for long and usually do not have any other videos.

General information about streaming films
If you watch movies for free on the Internet, you can get into trouble. According to a ruling by the European Court of Justice in April 2017 (case number C-527/15), there is a risk when streaming videos if the user has to realize that the films have ended up on the Internet illegally.
[mk_ad]
And anyone who, for example, discovers a film that has just been shown in the cinema in the free stream should be able to realize that this cannot be in the spirit of the creators and should therefore be prohibited. In the worst case scenario, you will have provided the necessary information for legal action - with your registration.
You can find an extensive list of fraudulent domains here .
You might also be interested in: E-book guides lure parents into the subscription trap
Article image: Shutterstock / By Tero Vesalainen
If you enjoyed this post and value the importance of well-founded information, become part of the exclusive Mimikama Club! Support our work and help us promote awareness and combat misinformation. As a club member you receive:
📬 Special Weekly Newsletter: Get exclusive content straight to your inbox.
🎥 Exclusive video* “Fact Checker Basic Course”: Learn from Andre Wolf how to recognize and combat misinformation.
📅 Early access to in-depth articles and fact checks: always be one step ahead.
📄 Bonus articles, just for you: Discover content you won't find anywhere else.
📝 Participation in webinars and workshops : Join us live or watch the recordings.
✔️ Quality exchange: Discuss safely in our comment function without trolls and bots.
Join us and become part of a community that stands for truth and clarity. Together we can make the world a little better!
* In this special course, Andre Wolf will teach you how to recognize and effectively combat misinformation. After completing the video, you have the opportunity to join our research team and actively participate in the education - an opportunity that is exclusively reserved for our club members!
Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )

