This is an old business practice that I remember from when I was a kid. There were a lot of second-rate publishers (books, in this case, but it worked for pretty much anything) which basically worked on a "buy a book now, and we'll send you a new one each month for <some really small price>". But you had to specifically opt out of this, which was done by ticking a very small box in the corner, in which case the prices for a single order would quadruple or something. Needless to say, refunds were out of the question.

I casually discarded those, blaming it on the new-found business astuteness of the society I lived in, but it seems this kind of scam is still around.

I'm calling it scam because, where I live, this type of business was actually considered a scam, and I think this went to the extent that they passed legislation to ensure their activity is regulated. They were required to clearly state the subscription model, in a separate box, delimited with clear colors and a bright background. Needless to say, they died out in less than a year.

The website obviously works, and is profitable, because it deliberately misinforms customers, and I think investing in this kind of business is very short-sighted. Not for you directly, since I presume it will bring you enough profit, but for the economy at large: this kind of activity adds no value whatsoever to anything, no one's life is substantially and essentially improved, all that happens is that some money change hands without producing any meaningful result. It's an economic plague.

I'm not casting judgement on yourself for investing in this business, particularly since I'm not willing to start a debate (on the Internet, of all things) about the "but everyone does it" argument. But defending this kind of shady practice is pretty low.

(Edited the rather rude words that were initially there instead of "pretty low")