Everyone is either a comedian or a critic — or both.
Adobe’s roughly $2 billion acquisition of Semrush isn’t even closed yet, and X has already turned the deal into a running joke: cancel your Semrush subscription now, before Adobe makes it impossible.
See some of the posts here:
The humor isn’t random, of course. Adobe has a pretty well-documented reputation for making subscriptions difficult to cancel, so much so that regulators stepped in.
In June 2024, the FTC sued Adobe for “hidden early termination fees” and “numerous cancellation hurdles,” alleging that the company pushed users into plans with pricey, poorly disclosed fees and then forced them through multiple steps when they tried to leave.
“Adobe trapped customers into year-long subscriptions,” said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Americans are tired of companies hiding the ball during subscription signup and then putting up roadblocks when they try to cancel.”
Yeesh! Basically, Adobe competes with Salesforce on tech, sure, and possibly your local gym on tough-to-cancel contracts. 😀
Why This Matters:
Sure, people are having fun with the announcement. But the reaction does matter, no?
Competitors like Ahrefs are undoubtedly watching/eyeing the backlash, and the jokes point to a real underlying anxiety: subscription lock-in and offboarding friction really do shape how marketers evaluate vendors, especially when budgets are tight and contract flexibility really matters. (Like right now.)
And there’s no shortage of interesting GEO-focused companies pitching similar capabilities. So why sign on — or stay on — with a Semrush-owned Adobe? The value has to be clear, especially with the specter of “tough cancellation” hanging over the relationship.
Experts React:
Here are some more posts on this from X:
Our Take:
Let’s take a step back: this is still a smart acquisition for Adobe given where marketers are headed.
GEO is about as hot as it gets. Half of consumers say they’re already using AI search. In fact, McKinsey projects that between 20-50% of traditional search traffic is at risk as AI tools capture decisions earlier in the journey — and that $750 billion in consumer spending will flow through AI-driven search by 2028.
In other words: the battleground for visibility is shifting fast, and tools like Semrush are becoming more central to how brands adapt. Adobe’s move reflects that — memes and cancellation jokes aside.
