Search: right to repair

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FTC Workshop Could Help 'Nix the Fix'

Charlotte Henry ·

While all the attention was on Facebook in Washington, down the road the FTC looked into improving the Right to Repair. Wired looked at what went on at the workshop it ran.

The FTC-hosted panel, called “Nixing the Fix,” raised the question of whether consumers should be able to fix their gadgets themselves or bring them to a non-approved repair shop without incurring a penalty. Customers who choose to repair their tech purchases often risk voiding their warranty by doing so. The panel included both proponents of the Right to Repair movement—who say tech manufacturers are putting unnecessary restrictions on gadget repairs in order to perpetuate their market dominance—and those who believe there should be guardrails around personal electronics repairs, whether for safety or cybersecurity-related reasons.

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Allstate's iCracked Purchase Could be a Win For Consumers

Charlotte Henry ·

Insurance company Allstate’s purchase of repair firm iCracked Tuesday confirmed its position as a key player in the right to repair movement. Malcolm Owen on AppleInsider commented that the deal could help Allstate speed up device repairs claims process. In the future, customers may only have to be without a phone for hours, not days.

At the same time as bolstering its consumer offerings, acquiring iCracked also makes Allstate a major force in the right to repair movement in the United States, due to its business involving third-party repairs. Repair.org executive director Gay Gordon-Byrne confirmed to Motherboard the outfit has already loaned a lobbyist to assist the push for legislation in New Hampshire. The purchase is already being seen as a positive for the movement, with iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens claiming “I’m optimistic that this partnership will elevate the visibility of the work that we’re doing together.

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Feds Say It's Legal to Hack DRM to Fix Your Devices

Andrew Orr ·

In a new decision, the Librarian of Congress and U.S. Copyright Office proposed new rules that make it legal to hack DRM to fix your electronic devices.

The move is a landmark win for the “right to repair” movement; essentially, the federal government has ruled that consumers and repair professionals have the right to legally hack the firmware of “lawfully acquired” devices for the “maintenance” and “repair” of that device. Previously, it was legal to hack tractor firmware for the purposes of repair; it is now legal to hack many consumer electronics.

This is a great decision, and although Apple opposes the right to repair, it’s a pro-consumer choice.