Consumer Rights Wiki - User contributions [en]

Canadian internet providers circumvent CRTC protection

2025-08-17T18:29:54Z

Alyssamcfrownyface: sentence structure changes, grammar

{{ToneWarning}}
{{InfoboxProductLine
| Title = Fiber internet
| Release Year =1989
| Product Type =Fiber optic network
| In Production =Yes, still being expanded across Canada today via government grants
| Official Website =https://www.risq.quebec/
| Logo =Fibreoptic.jpg
}}Internet access is a monthly subscription to access a physical infrastructure. Modern internet connections use cable such a COAX or fiber optics to deliver TV and internet to homes across Canada. Once the cables are in place and the installation is complete, customer interactions or maintenance outside of accidents and the degradation of cables over time is typically not needed. The average life span of a fiber-optic cable ranges from 20 to 40 years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yaméogo |first=Banti Laure Mathilde |last2=Charlton |first2=Douglas W. |last3=Doucet |first3=David |last4=Desrosiers |first4=Christian |last5=O’Sullivan |first5=Maurice |last6=Tremblay |first6=Christine |date=25 Jan 2021 |title=Detecting Performance Degradation in Fiber-Optic Cables |url=https://www.etsmtl.ca/en/news/detecting-performance-degradation-fiber-optic-cables |url-status=live |access-date=14 May 2025 |website=www.etsmtl.ca}}</ref>

Internet access prices are mainly reflected by the speed, measured in megabits per second (Mbps), and the maximum data usage per month.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ([https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/home-accueil.htm CRTC]) is a protection agency in Canada to protect Canadians from abuse by larger telecom companies. They do not regulate prices internet service providers are charging the end users, with the exception of prohibiting differential pricing (i.e., when a company offers different prices for the same level of service). They do, however, regulate the rates telecom companies charge their competitors to utilize their fiber networks.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-01-17 |title=Internet - Our Role |url=https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/internet/role.htm |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission}}</ref>

==Consumer Impact==
Business model - Time based increases.

The CRTC and contract laws had a loop hole that allowed for "inflation" based increases within 30 to 60 days notice. These increases occur on the base price of the service. They're not allowed to alter discounts for a term period, often for two years. Lower prices are used to attract new clients, e.g., 50$ fiber with lifetime discount or lifetime price.

Videotron issues increases frequently also regardless of what your price starts at. These are the sweeping emailed internet increases in recent years:{{CitationNeeded}}

*December 4, 2024 - 2$ - Notice by email 60 days prior
*March 18, 2023 - 3$ - Notice by email 60 days prior
*April 15, 2022 - 1$ - Notice by email 60 days prior
*March 1, 2021 - 3$ - Notice by email 60 days prior

Other times, the increase notice is listed at the bottom of the bill sent to the consumer.
[[File:Screenshot 2025-05-13 144918.png|thumb|Example of yearly Bell increase notice that will apply to all clients regardless.]]
Bell issues frequent increases of 5 to 6$ also regardless of what price you're currently paying. Recent sign-ups start around 50$ for over 1Gbit fiber services. Their door to door vendors or instore vendors will often say the price is good for 2 years, which is a misrepresentation.{{Citation needed}}

*May 1st, 2025 - 6$
*Feb 1st, 2025 - 4$
*July 1st, 2024 - 5$
*March 1st 2024 - 5$

Prices are often regionally adjusted to target areas they want to increase signups in which makes valuation of the product difficult. What's Gbit internet worth globally?

France 20,99€ per month for fiber 1gbit up and down - 32.80 CAD https://www.red-by-sfr.fr/offre-internet/#redintid=B_menu-boutique_box?sv1=affiliate&sv_campaign_id=652723&awc=7310_1747208248_7d249cdde7de681d34902ff74de7dc88&sfrcpid=t3_awin_8259_652723_RED-FR&utm_medium=affiliation&utm_source=8259&utm_campaign=652723_StudyinFrance

UK - £33.00 per month for fiber 1gbit - 61.32 CAD

https://onestream.co.uk/broadband/products

Australia - 99$ per month for fiber 1Gbit - 89.40 CAD

https://www.buddytelco.com.au/?utm_source=whistleout&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=residential_nbn600d41u&utm_content=byo&gad_source=7&dclid=COypr5C-oo0DFYSzpgQdu903HQ (Australia fiber networks are also heavily subsidized by the government)

The main issue is that loyal clients will always end up paying more than the current list prices and new customer prices if they're not continually being proactive.

You signed at a certain price, but there's no certainly during that term companies won't indiscriminately raise prices. It's hard to budget.

Business model - misleading ads / pricing tree
[[File:Screenshot 20250511 102009 Instagram.jpg|thumb|Ad highlighting a price comparing a product with 6 times less bandwidth, offered at 55$ per month. However, looking on their site shows Fiber 500 is listed at 110$ per month.]]
[[File:Screenshot 2025-05-13 132638.png|thumb|Current base prices of internet to compare with ad offered to a customer based on location and Ip.]]

Market Control - Competition is limited large providers expand their networks with help from government grants.<ref>{{Cite web |date=26 Jul 2023 |title=Governments of Canada and Ontario investing over $22 million to bring high-speed internet access to more than 1,400 homes in 10 communities in Ontario |url=https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1003326/governments-of-canada-and-ontario-investing-over-22-million-to-bring-high-speed-internet-access-to-more-than-1400-homes-in-10-communities-in-ontario |url-status=live |access-date=14 May 2025 |website=Ontario Newsroom}}</ref>

==Incidents==
This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this product. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the .
===Bell fights CRTC for allowing small companies to rent their networks to larger ones to service remote areas (2025 05 12)===
{{Main|link to the main article}}
CRTC wants to allow existing local provides the ability to rent their networks to larger national telecom companies instead of having the large telecom companies use grants to build parallel networks. Bell one of the dominating telecom companies doesn't support

===Bell announces network wide sweeping increase starting May 1st, 2025 (''2025 04 30'')===
Home internet prices are going up 6$ starting May 1st, 2025, a second increase this year.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lamont |first=Jonathan |date=30 Apr 2025 |title=Reminder: Your Bell internet bill is about to go up |url=https://mobilesyrup.com/2025/04/30/reminder-your-bell-internet-bill-is-about-to-go-up/ |url-status=live |access-date=14 May 2025 |website=MobileSyrup}}</ref>

===CRTC makes internet at reasonable speeds a basic service and funds it (''date'')===
CRTC invests 750 million for providers to offer speeds of 50mpbs to 8% of Canadians.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kupfer |first=Matthew |date=21 Dec 2016 |title=CRTC declares broadband internet access a basic service |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/crtc-internet-essential-service-1.3906664 |url-status=live |access-date=14 May 2025 |website=CBC}}</ref>
==See also==
==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Service companies]]
[[Category:Internet service providers]]

Chromium

2025-08-17T18:07:45Z

Alyssamcfrownyface: sentence structure changes

{{ToneWarning}}

'''Chromium''' is a [[wikipedia:Free_and_open-source_software|free and open-source]] [[:Category:Web browsers|web browser]] developed by and primarily maintained by [[Google]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Google |date= |title=Chromium |url=https://www.chromium.org/Home/ |access-date=2025-08-12}}</ref> Several major web browsers use Chromium as the base of their software, including [[Google Chrome]],<ref name=":0" /> [[Microsoft Edge]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-05-06 |title=10 cool things to check out at Microsoft Build 2019 |url=https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2019/05/06/10-cool-things-to-check-out-at-microsoft-build-2019/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=blogs.microsoft.com}}</ref> [[Opera]]/[[Opera GX]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-08-27 |title=Today, Opera 15 has been updated to Opera 16 |url=https://blogs.opera.com/news/2013/08/today-opera-15-has-been-updated-to-opera-16/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=blogs.opera.com}}</ref> [[Brave browser|Brave]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-08-14 |title=Brave - Homepage |url=https://brave.com/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=brave.com}}</ref> and others.

==Controversies==

===Manifest V3===
Manifest V3 is an update to the manifest structure used by browser-extensions across the majority of the browser market; it is presented as an upgrade to security, privacy and performance.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Li |first=David |title=Resuming the transition to Manifest V3 |url=https://developer.chrome.com/blog/resuming-the-transition-to-mv3 |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=Chrome for developers}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=12 Sep 2024 |title=Overview and timelines for migrating to Manifest V3 |url=https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/extensions-chromium/developer-guide/manifest-v3 |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=[[Microsoft]]}}</ref> Manifest V3's changes restrict the access browser-extensions can have, presenting a security benefit by not allowing them to load remote resources on the fly or deeply alter rendered content. By doing so, the effectiveness of the browser market's most effective ad-blockers is diminished.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Siddiqui |first=Aamir |date=17 Nov 2023 |title=Google's Manifest V3 changes will soon disable uBlock Origin on Chrome |url=https://www.androidauthority.com/google-chrome-manifest-v3-changes-3386506/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=Android Authority}}</ref> Workarounds and updated versions of Manifest V3 have been made but are less effective since, for example, blocked domains cannot be updated as conveniently.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Buria |first=Taras |date=3 Aug 2024 |title=uBlock Origin developer recommends switching to uBlock Lite as Chrome flags the extension |url=https://www.neowin.net/news/ublock-origin-developer-recommends-switching-to-ublock-lite-as-chrome-flags-the-extension/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=Neowin}}</ref> This manifest change is backed by leading Chromium browsers, making it difficult for other browsers to match previous ad-blocking abilities without committing to sustaining Manifest V2 (such as Firefox, which also uses chromium-sourced manifests<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sullivan |first=Edward |date=13 Mar 2024 |title=Manifest V3 & Manifest V2 (March 2024 update) |url=https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2024/03/13/manifest-v3-manifest-v2-march-2024-update/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=[[Mozilla]]}}</ref>) or sustaining their own ad-blocking solutions<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 Jun 2024 |title=What Manifest V3 means for Brave Shields and the use of extensions in the Brave browser |url=https://brave.com/blog/brave-shields-manifest-v3/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=[[Brave]]}}</ref> of varied effectiveness.<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 Jun 2024 |title=Manifest v3 update: Vivaldi is future-proofed with its built-in functionality |url=https://vivaldi.com/blog/manifest-v3-update-vivaldi-is-future-proofed-with-its-built-in-functionality/ |url-status=live |access-date=24 Mar 2025 |website=[[Vivaldi]]}}</ref>
==Licensing==
Chromium's code is published under the 3-clause BSD license <ref>{{Cite web |last=Google |title=LICENSE |url=https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/+/master/LICENSE |access-date=2025-08-12}}</ref>

=References=
<references />
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]

Minecraft account migration

2025-08-17T18:04:25Z

Alyssamcfrownyface: formatting corrections

{{StubNotice}}

==Introduction==
On October 21st, 2020, [[Mojang]] announced that all Minecraft Java Edition users must migrate their Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts to retain access to the game. On December 18th, 2023, consumers who did not do so lost access and needed to re-purchase the game to regain it. Any game progress, including purchased first and third party in-game items were lost.

==General==
[[wikipedia:Minecraft|'''''Minecraft''''']] is a sandbox video game developed by Swedish developer '''Mojang Studios''' (also known as '''Mojang AB''' or simply '''Mojang'''). The original PC version of the game was created by Markus "Notch" Persson using the Java programming language, and it is known as "Minecraft Java Edition". The first public alpha version of Java Edition came out on May 17th, 2009, then fully released on November 18th, 2011. On September 15th, 2014, Mojang was acquired by '''[[Microsoft]]'''.<ref name=":1" />

Throughout Java Edition's development, players could exclusively access their purchased copy of the game through the use of a Mojang account.<ref name=":2" /> However, on October 21st, 2020, Mojang announced that Minecraft Java Edition players must migrate their Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts.<ref name=":03">[https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/java-edition-moving-house "Java Edition is moving house"] - minecraft.net - accessed 2025-01-29</ref> Consumers who did not migrate their accounts by December 18th, 2023 lost their access to the game and had to re-purchase Minecraft Java Edition under a Microsoft account with a new username at full retail price if they wanted to play.<ref name=":3" />

At the time of Mojang's acquisition by Microsoft, the PC version of Minecraft was known as "Minecraft Java Edition". Before the acquisition and at least through the end of 2019, customers who wanted to purchase Minecraft Java Edition would do so by creating a Mojang account and buying the game under that account's name.<ref name=":1">[https://web.archive.org/web/20191219131419/https://my.minecraft.net/en-us/login/ "Archived Minecraft Website from December 19, 2019 showing Mojang Accounts were the exclusive method of signing in"] - archive.org</ref> Minecraft Java Edition owners would then play the game by signing into the game's launcher with their Mojang Account.

Mojang announced on October 21, 2020 that Minecraft Java Edition players would need to migrate their Mojang account to a Microsoft account.<ref name=":0">[https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/java-edition-moving-house "Java Edition is moving house"] - minecraft.net - accessed 2025-01-29</ref> Those who migrated their Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts would maintain access to their username, cosmetics, player worlds, and earn an exclusive cosmetic cape.<ref name=":0" />

Mojang's staff wrote wrote the following about the account migration: <blockquote>"Now just to be clear, migrating from Mojang to Microsoft accounts is ''mandatory''. If you don’t make the move, in several months you won’t be able to log in anymore – which means you won’t be able to play either."<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Account migration started in waves or "batches" sometime in early 2021.<ref name=":0" /> Initially, account migration was voluntary, and users with Mojang accounts could play Minecraft Java Edition without needing to migrate their accounts. On February 2, 2022, Mojang announced that on March 10, 2022 the voluntary migration period would end and that Mojang account users would be unable to play Minecraft Java Edition without migrating their account. On May 8, 2023, Mojang announced that Mojang account owners would have until September 19, 2023 to migrate to a Microsoft account or permanently lose the capacity to migrate their account. Following this September 19, 2023 deadline, Mojang gave Mojang account owners who missed the deadline a three month grace period through December 18, 2023 to migrate their account.<ref name=":2">[https://web.archive.org/web/20231210202436/https://help.minecraft.net/hc/en-us/articles/19615552270221 "Post-Migration Process FAQ"] - help.minecraft.net - archived 2023-12-10</ref> Mojang account owners who exercised their option under this three-month grace period would not have access to the cosmetics associated with their Mojang account or the certainty that they would enjoy the username associated with their Mojang account under their Microsoft account. After December 18, 2023, Mojang account owners who had purchased Minecraft Java Edition from Mojang would need to purchase Minecraft under a Microsoft account in order to play the game.

On a page titled "I Missed My Chance to Migrate. What Happens to My Account?" on the official Minecraft Help Center, Mojang explains: <blockquote>"To continue playing Minecraft, you will have to buy Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition using a Microsoft account.<ref name=":3">[https://help.minecraft.net/hc/en-us/articles/19633473939981-I-Missed-My-Chance-to-Migrate-What-Happens-to-My-Account "I Missed My Chance to Migrate. What Happens to My Account?"] - help.minecraft.net - accessed 2025-02-01</ref> </blockquote>Even during the migration period, it was not made easy to contact the people behind Minecraft about this. Support was not replying to questions about the migration process and issues with it.

Users who could not figure out how to migrate their accounts that they bought in the pre-release era had to re-purchase Minecraft with a different username for a post-release price (Alpha costing 9.95€, Beta costing 14.95€, and the full release being 29.99€). Additionally, even if users successfully migrated their account, in the event that their Microsoft account is compromised, there is currently no avenue for Minecraft account recovery or refunding the initial purchase, and the user is required to re-purchase Minecraft to regain access to the game<ref>https://archive.org/details/microsoft-email</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-06-24 |title=Can i do something against this? Microsoft says that I have to repurchase the game!? |url=https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fcan-i-do-something-against-this-microsoft-says-that-i-have-v0-yjhz852gys8d1.png%3Fwidth%3D2028%26format%3Dpng%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3Dc3fefb859c778af5218802093b645ecc21d06702 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250812032340/http://web.archive.org/screenshot/https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fcan-i-do-something-against-this-microsoft-says-that-i-have-v0-yjhz852gys8d1.png%3Fwidth%3D2028%26format%3Dpng%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3Dc3fefb859c778af5218802093b645ecc21d06702 |archive-date=2025-08-12 |access-date=2025-08-11}}</ref>.

In https://web.archive.org/web/20210813083726/https://notch.tumblr.com/post/2175441966/minecraft-beta-december-20-2010 Notch promised in his blog that all purchasers of the Alpha version of the game would get all purchases of the game for free, even saying ''"a promise is a promise"'', as he removed it from purchases made after the release of Beta.

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Incidents]]
[[Category:Minecraft]]

Brother printers causing issues with third party inks

2025-08-17T17:56:24Z

Alyssamcfrownyface: /* Impact on Consumer Protection */ removed an opinionated statement

{{ToneWarning}}
In the past, [[Brother Industries Ltd.|Brother]] has allowed the use of third-party toner in their printers which showcases a consumer-friendly approach to the printing industry. In recent years, however, firmware updates have been implemented to discourage toner usage from manufacturers other than Brother. When a user attempts to install a third-party toner, an act that was previously accepted, the Brother printer displays an error message warning that the toner may damage the printer and only OEM (original equipment manufacturer) toner is safe to use. Continuing their practice of installing third-party toners, some users report a notable decrease in print quality. This is due to the firmware updates having disabled color registration among other core printing features from third-party toner cartridges, effectively locking in users to purchase toners manufactured only by Brother.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Jacobs |first=Skye |date=2025-03-05 |title=Brother printers are quietly sabotaging third-party toner with firmware updates |url=https://www.techspot.com/news/107022-brother-printers-quietly-sabotaging-third-party-toner-firmware.html}}</ref>

==Exploitative Practices==
*'''Post-Sale Function Removal''' – Firmware updates retroactively remove previously available features, such as automatic color registration, for users using non-OEM toner.<ref name="reddit">[https://www.reddit.com/r/printers/comments/s9b2eg Brother MFC firmware update - non-genuine toner now disables critical features.]</ref><ref name="reddit-2">[https://www.reddit.com/r/printers/comments/w60687/brother_mfcl3370cdw_firmware_downgrade_needed/ Brother MFC-L3370CDW Firmware Downgrade needed]</ref>
*'''Vendor lock-in via DRM''' – Printers continue to function with third-party toner but print at lower quality unless OEM toner is installed.<ref name=":0" />
*'''Anti-consumer software practices''' – Firmware updates cannot be easily rolled back, preventing consumers from restoring lost functionality.<ref name="github-fwupd">[https://github.com/sedrubal/brother_printer_fwupd/issues/9 Brother printer firmware downgrade discussion.]</ref>
*'''Deceptive practices''' – Printers do not reject third-party toner but intentionally cause a toner failure, which discourages use of third party toners.<ref name="hackernews">[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31860131 Tell HN: Brother printers now locking out non-OEM paraphernalia.]</ref><ref name="reddit-2" />

==How it works==
1. Consumers purchase a Brother laser printer that previously accepted third-party toner.

2. A firmware update (e.g., W1.56) is pushed and does not notify users of any major changes in core functionality.

3. After updating, users report:

*Color registration fails by default, causing misaligned prints.<ref name="cups">[https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/CUPS/Printer-specific_problems#Updating_the_firmware ArchWiki - Printer-specific problems with Brother.]</ref>
4. Brother support acknowledges that installing OEM toner will immediately resolve the issue.<ref name="hackernews" />
*Older firmware versions are removed from Brother’s servers, preventing firmware downgrades that would fix the issue while also allowing consumers to use their preferred toner.<ref name="github-ohbrother">[https://github.com/CauldronDevelopmentLLC/oh-brother/issues/30 Discussion on firmware rollback for Brother printers.]</ref>

==Impact on Consumer Protection==
*Consumers may no longer use the ink provider of their choice without compromising the functionality of their printer.
*Consumers previously able to save money by purchasing third-party toner are now required to purchase OEM toner at a higher cost to maintain printer functionality.
*No prior warning of change in the printer's core functionality had been given before these firmware updates were installed.
*Workarounds tend to involve blocking the firmware updates or attempting downgrading the firmware, both of which Brother actively discourages.

==Brother's response==
On March 5th 2025, following the publication of a video on the Louis Rossmann YouTube channel, Brother addressed the issue in a response given to Ars Technica and stated the following: <ref name="ars-response">[https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/03/brother-denies-using-firmware-updates-to-brick-printers-with-third-party-ink/ Brother denies using firmware updates to brick printers with third-party ink]</ref>
<blockquote>
"We are aware of the recent false claims suggesting that a Brother firmware update may have restricted the use of third-party ink cartridges. Please be assured that Brother firmware updates do not block the use of third-party ink in our machines."
</blockquote>
They also detailed that:
<blockquote>
"Brother printers do not intentionally degrade print quality based on whether a Brother Genuine or non-genuine ink/ toner cartridge is used. Brother cannot verify the quality of printing that will result when using a third-party compatible with a Brother printer."
</blockquote>
In their conclusion, they've attributed consumers' confusion and frustration to the following:
<blockquote>
"Brother encourages the use of Brother Genuine ink and toner for optimal performance and reliability, and it is standard practice that we perform a Brother Genuine check when troubleshooting a Brother printer. Compatible supplies may range in quality, and in order to verify that a printer is working properly, we like to troubleshoot with Brother Genuine supplies. We believe this check in the process may have led to a misunderstanding[,] but as we confirmed, the firmware update would not be responsible for the degradation of quality or removal of printer features."
</blockquote>
==User evidence & reports==
===Hacker News Discussion (2022)===
*Users have noticed that Brother's printers do accept third-party toner instead of outright rejection. This leads some to suspect the consequential loss of print quality may be a deliberate act. One user stated:
<blockquote>''Brother seems to be apparently accepting the ink, but then purposefully making the print quality poorer.''<ref name="hackernews" /></blockquote>

===Reddit reports (r/printers)===
*A firmware update on the Brother MFC-3750 disabled automatic color registration when third-party toner was detected.<ref name="reddit" />
*A Brother support agent confirmed that installing OEM toner would "fix" the issue instantly, supporting user claims that the printer was being artificially restricted.

===GitHub developer investigation===
*A project analyzing Brother firmware updates discovered that older firmware versions were removed from Brother’s servers, making it impossible for users to roll back to a working version.<ref name="github-fwupd" />
*Another GitHub discussion showed that Brother firmware updates continue to lock out more non-Brother toner cartridges with each update.<ref name="github-ohbrother" />
*This is similar to [[HP Dynamic Security]], which blocks non-OEM cartridges.

===Quality Example===
[[File:Brother HL-L9310CDW 1.69 1.32 before registration deleted.png|alt=Brother HL-L9310CDW 1.69 1.32, before deletion of colour registration.|none|thumb|800x800px|Brother HL-L9310CDW 1.69 1.32, before deletion of color registration.]]

==Comparison to other industry decisions==
{| class="wikitable"
!Company!!Tactic Used
|-
|'''HP'''||"Dynamic Security" firmware updates blocking non-OEM ink
|-
|'''Epson'''||Ink expiration DRM, even when cartridges are full
|-
|'''Canon'''||Firmware updates that disable scanning when ink is low
|-
|'''Brother'''||Print degradation for non-OEM toner users
|}

==Potential legal implications==
If the removal of core printing functionality after purchase is deliberate, this action may qualify as a deceptive trade practice in multiple jurisdictions.

Removal of previous workable firmware versions from the company's website may indicate the company's willful lock-out of consumer choice, effectively forcing purchases that do not align with the consumer's preferences.

==Mitigations available to users==
#'''Avoid Firmware Updates''' – Disable auto-updates to prevent forced function removal. This may, however, lead to security risks.
#'''Attempt to downgrade''' – Some users have managed to roll back firmware, though this is becoming increasingly difficult.<ref name="github-ohbrother" />
#'''HL-L9310CDW (with firmware main 1.69, sub 1.31):''' On the menu of the printer, delete the color registration to improve quality by reducing the misalignment of the individual colors. However, the best solution is to have a configuration option to set the offset individual (X, Y) for each color with the smallest possible increment, perhaps through an external (CUPS) printer driver.

==References==
<references />

[[Category:Brother]]
[[Category:Digital Restrictions]]
[[Category:Vendor Lock-in]]
[[Category:Post-Sale Firmware Lockouts]]