Companies Keep Getting Burned For Bricking Products. Don't Expect Them To Stop.

Companies regularly get burned by hasty decisions to kill off and brick smart products. But bad PR won't change their behavior. Also: a TikTok-er calls out automakers for locking out repair techs.

There’s a “dark pattern” that’s emerging in the smart electronics space: manufacturers that sell pricey, connected products are arbitrarily declaring their products “obsolete” and “dead,” then passing the news along to their customers who - surprise, surprise - don’t agree.

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We’ve saw this play out with the Sonos speakers back in 2019 when the company that sells pricey, wireless home audio devices introduced a program to have customers “brick” functioning speakers and send them to a e-cycling center in order to qualify for a discount on upgraded hardware. That led to a massive backlash - with custoers (rightly) pointing out that sending perfectly functioning hardware to the landfill was about the least sustainable thing imaginable. That saw Sonos reverse course, enabling customers to qualify for the upgrade without disabling their existing speaker.

Manufacturers’ decisions to brick otherwise function smart devices angers their customers - but otherwise faces no scrutiny. (Image by Dall-E)

And it’s what happened more recently with the music streaming service Spotify. That company’s first experiment in hardware, the Car Thing, allowed owners of older model cars to use Spotify in their vehicles. It launched in 2021. Within a year, however, Spotify declared that it was discontinuing sales of the Car Things after considerable losses. Then, in May, 2024, it informed customers that it was ending support of the device, closing down the cloud based services that Car Thing relies on and - essentially “bricking” the device.

As with Sonos, Spotify’s recommendation to customers was to “dispos[e] of your device following local electronic waste guidelines,” placing the burden of the corporate decision squarely on their customers (not to mention the planet)!

Also as with the Sonos news, the reaction was swift and negative, including the filing of a class action lawsuit in late May that accused the company of engaging in “deception, deceptive acts or practices, fraud, misrepresentations, or concealment” in connection with the sale of the Car Thing.

Almost simultaneous with the Spotify announcement was one from toothbrush maker Oral B that it was discontinuing software support for a pricey, $230 "smart" toothbrush that was integrated with Amazon's Alexa virtual assistant and that it launched in 2020. The company’s decision effectively killed off a range of smart features, including voice recognition and AI-powered oral care advice, that convinced owners to pay a premium for it.

As PIRG’s Lucas Gutterman pointed out in a blog post this week, Spotify, Sonos and other firms have a choice about how to handle these “end of life decisions.” Among other things, firms like “Spotify should make tools available for consumers so they can keep using the devices,” he wrote. 

Spotify and other hardware makers might also view the resulting PR crises from these announcements as “unforeseen opportunit(ies) to set an example for the rest of the technology industry about how to repurpose hardware and keep it out of the waste stream.”

Alas, there’s little evidence of such a change happening. Consumers in the United States collectively dispose of more than 500 pounds of electronic waste each second, with e-waste one of the fastest growing forms of pollution. However, as it stands, there is little disincentive for manufacturers to continue to brick and abandon products they no longer with to support. No laws or regulations govern arbitrary decisions to cut off support and effectively kill off functioning hardware. And in most states, the cost and onus for disposing of manufacturer-abandoned smart devices falls entirely to consumers and local communities, rather than the manufacturers who designed, built, marketed and sold the devices.

That simmering crisis may take on entirely new dimensions next year, when Microsoft ends support for its Windows 10 operating system- a business decision that could condemn more than 200 million electronic devices to the landfill.

What’s needed are guardrails for manufacturers and software makers - guidelines around both the creation and long term management of smart, connected devices that takes not only their corporate bottom line and “shareholder value” into consideration, but also the rights of consumers, the useful life of hardware and the environment.

If that’s an idea that gets you saying “F*ck Yeah!” maybe check out next month’s HOPE (Hackers on Planet Earth) Conference down in New York City. Fight to Repair EIC Paul Roberts will be speaking with other leading experts ,including Mr. Gutterman from PIRG on this very topic in a talk entitled “EOL…RLY? The Epidemic of Bricked and Abandoned Stuff.” You can attend virtually or in person. Tickets are for sale here.

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Other News:

TikTok Video Calls Out Automakers For Locking Out Mechanics

A mechanic from Shorty's Speed Shop shared on TikTok that he has been locked out of the computer systems in a new Dodge Ram due to new security protocols. This requires mechanics to be credentialed Vehicle Security Professionals (VSPs), involving fees and insurance, to access certain repairs. The new regulations, part of the NASTF Security Professional Registry, aim to protect vehicles from theft but also increase the costs and complicate repairs for independent mechanics. They are raising concerns about an automotive "right to repair" and potential increased repair costs.

What the EU’s new Right to Repair Directive Means for your Business

The new legislation presents opportunities for small businesses offering repairs. And, once rules on repair are harmonized across EU member states, the new legislation should make it easier for SMEs to offer repair services across those states. The new European Repair Information Form and the new European Online Platform for Repairs should also make it easier for SMEs to promote their repair services to consumers. For manufacturers too, there may be an opportunity to increase brand loyalty by offering a repair service to customers and to develop a stronger, post-sale, relationship with customers.

EFF’s Cindy Cohn Calls Out Planned Obsolescence

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A post shared by @bioneers

In the UK, A Grass Roots Repair Movement is Blossoming

The Guardian writes on the emergence of a vibrant, volunteer-run repair culture in the UK - highlighting a Repair café in Bethnal Green, London - one of 580 such events operating across the UK. “Repair cafés form the backbone of a flourishing nationwide repair subculture inspired by a movement that began with Repair Café de Meevaart, which launched in Amsterdam in 2009,” The Guardian notes. That includes initiatives like The Restart Project’s Rosie the Restarter, which teach women how to repair everything from lawnmowers to lamps; charities like Tech-Takeback that adopt and renovate electric appliances for donation and programs to teach repair skills to schoolchildren.

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