Image credit – iFixit
If you’ve ever broken a phone or computer, you probably know that sending it back to the company you bought it from could result in costly repairs. This is why many third-party repair shops exist, where usually you can get the problem fixed for a much lower price, but that’s something that many companies do not actively encourage.
This has resulted in people fighting for the right to repair, and now proponents of that are being backed by US President Joe Biden, who recently issued an executive order for the right to repair. What this means is that the President will direct the FTC to create rules that will ban companies from establishing repair monopolies or putting into place policies that would prevent DIY or independent repair.
For those unfamiliar with the right to repair movement, groups have been calling on companies to make it easier for them to repair devices and access components and manuals needed to get the job done. However, companies have resisted this claiming that this is done to protect consumers. Companies like Apple even have software security measures in place that warns users if non-genuine parts are used.
It will be interesting to see if this executive order will change things massively, and how huge corporations will respond to it, but for now, this is good news for those who champion the right to repair movement.
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