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A woman says she was misled by Rosetta Stone when she purchased a foreign language learning course advertised as being “yours to keep forever” and then found out it would actually expire in two years.
Nadia Lotun of California claims Rosetta Stone is intentionally deceiving consumers like her in order to sell more language courses and she is suing because over it. Lotun filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Rosetta Stone and its parent companies, Cambian Learning Group Inc. and Veritas Capital Fund Management, asking the court to put a stop to the company’s allegedly unfair practices.
She is seeking a jury trial and financial compensation for her and other potential Class Members who also purchased Rosetta Stone language software that did not come with lifetime ownership.
“Defendants actively promoted, advertised, and represented to consumers a ‘lifetime software download’ of foreign language course(s) … that they never intended to honor,” the class action lawsuit says. Rosetta Stone “concealed, suppressed, and omitted material facts about its foreign language online software package from consumers to entice consumers … [and] to maximize income and sales.”
Lotun says she purchased a Learn Spanish: Rosetta Stone Bonus Pack, which was said to offer a 24-month subscription and lifetime download of the software for about $145 in November 2018 through Amazon.
According to her class action lawsuit, she chose the Rosetta Stone course over other Spanish language learning courses with the “reasonable expectation that she could download the software to any PC and/or Mac at any time for at least a lifetime, and that the Rosetta Stone software was hers to keep forever.”
In fact, the software was only hers to keep for 24 months, the class action lawsuit says. As a result, she felt tricked, cheated and ripped off, her lawyers wrote in the class action complaint.
Lotun claims she not only suffered financial harm due to Rosetta Stone’s practices, but also emotional distress, frustration, anxiety and wasted time.
She claims Rosetta Stone’s actions violate California’s False Advertising, Consumer Legal Remedies, and Unfair Business Practices acts. The company had a “duty to disclose” that the purchase of the software did not include the lifetime access its advertising led Lotun to believe it did, she says.
The court must act and issue an injunction preventing Rosetta Stone from “tricking customers into purchasing [its] products through [its] fraudulent advertisements and packaging,” the class action says.
Lotun originally filed the class action Sept. 24 in California state court. Lawyers for Rosetta Stone moved to have the case transferred to U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Southern Division on Dec. 29.
Have you ever purchased a downloadable Rosetta Stone foreign language course? Were you led to believe the software would be yours to keep, only to find out later that it expired? Tell us about it in the comment section below.
Lead plaintiff Lotun and the proposed Class Members are represented by James H. Bartolomei III of Duncan Firm, P.A.
The Rosetta Stone Class Action Lawsuit is Nadia Lotun, et al. v. Rosetta Stone Inc., et al., Case No. 8:20-cv-02430, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Southern Division.
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81 thoughts onRosetta Stone Class Action Lawsuit Says ‘Lifetime Software’ Expires
tengo un curso de rosetta stone que compre de 5 cds que supuestamente no caducaban y eran de por vida ahora que los quiero activar no puedo hacerlo porque el sofware no responde por alguna razon quiero comunicarme con rosetta stone para obtener ayuda y no responden los numeros que aparecen en el sofware nadie se hace responsable,quisiera agregarme a esa demanda colectiva porque igual me siento enganado y estafado me han hecho creer en algo que nunca fue cierto.
I too purchased a lifetime plan and only found out it was canceled when I went into the app for a lesson. There was no prior indication that the plan may be temporary.
Recién llegado a los EUA, hace aproximadamente 4 años compré un curso completo de cinco CD para aprender Englis (American) contento o de 5 niveles, donde en ningún momento se me advirtió que tuviese algún tipo de caducidad, por diversas razones no he tenido el tiempo par dedicarle al aprendizaje del idioma inglés, ahora que quiero retomar mi curso me veo imposibilitado, ya que lo tengo montado en mi lapto vieja, cuando intento montarlo en mi nueva lapto doy mis datos, y no me permiten procesar mi solicitud argumentando que está caducada, y que debo comprar el curso nuevamente. El curso lo compré en Florida, en BestBuy a 499,00$, Que puedo hacer para que se me reconozca mi derecho.
Please add me I bought a lifetime subscription and now I can no longer use it.
I bought the Spanish CDs for full price. Then Rosetta switched to digital only. I was told I would have a lifetime after a one time payment to go digital, which I PAID again. Next thing I know I am getting an email saying I have to renew. Asking for MORE money. I downloaded Duo Lingo but I am highly upset.
I received the “lifetime” package for Christmas 2 years ago and I tried logging in today finding out it is expired/deactivated. This is very misleading advertising a lifetime package that lasts 2 years. False advertising at its finest. Very displeased.