Kilian Seilor – CC 0.0GNN has reported often on improvements in consumer’s right to repair products, from phones to cars, where for decades it’s become harder and harder to do so.Now, the California state government has passed a landmark law that obligates technology companies to provide parts and manuals for repairing smartphones for seven years after their market release.Senate Bill 244 passed 65-0 in the Assembly, and 38-0 in the Senate, and made California, the seat of so much of American technological hardware and software, the third state in the union to pass this so-called “right to repair” legislation.On a more granular level, the bill guarantees consumers’ rights to replacement parts for three years’ time in the case of devices costing between $50 and $99, and seven years in the case of devices costing more than $100, with the bill retroactively affecting devices made and sold in 2021.Similar laws have been passed in Minnesota and New York, but none with such a long-term period as California.”Accessible, affordable, widely available repair benefits everyone,” said Kyle Wiens, the CEO of advocacy group iFixit, in a statement. “We are especially happy to see this bill passed in the state where iFixit’s headquarters is located, which is also Big Tech’s backyard. Right to Repair News: Company Embodying ‘Right to Repair,’ By Redesigning Auto parts That Constantly Failed–And Selling Them LowerOne of the main reasons Wiens is cheering on this is that large manufacturers from John Deere to Apple have previously lobbied against right-to repair legislation for two reasons. German City diverts goods from landfills, repairs them, then sells them in ‘Department Stores for Reuse.’ The ultimate end to which consumers of these irreparable products are forced to make is that they end up in the landfill. The so-called “e-waste” can be a major environmental problem because it does not biodegrade and requires technical dismantling.
From phones to cars, where it has been increasingly difficult to repair products for decades, GNN has frequently reported on improvements. A historic law that requires technology companies to supply parts and repair manuals for smartphones for seven years after their market was passed by the California state government.
The second article to appear on Good News Network was California Passes Right-to-Repair Act Guaranteeing Seven Years of Parts for Your Phone.
