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Discontinuation bricking: Difference between revisions

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'''Discontinuation bricking''' occurs when a product is rendered non-functional ("bricked") because the manufacturer has decided to discontinue it. Discontinuation bricking usually occurs in products that require a connection to a remote server hosted by the producer. The product may become bricked if the company decides to shut down services or goes out of business entirely, without allowing the consumer to substitute those services with alternative and/or [[self-hosted]] solutions. End-of-life for a product does not require the product to be bricked.


'''Discontinuation bricking''' occurs when a product is rendered no longer functional ("bricked") because the manufacturer has decided to discontinue it. Discontinuation bricking almost exclusively occurs in products that require a connection to a remote server hosted by the producer. The product may become bricked if the company decides to shut down services or if the company goes out of business entirely, while not allowing the consumer to substitute those services with alternative and/or [[self-hosted]] solutions. End-of-life for a product does not require the product to be bricked.
{| class="wikitable" style="margin: auto;"
 
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible" style="margin: auto;"
|+End-of-Life compared to bricking
|+End-of-Life compared to bricking
!
!
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|-
|-
|Device boots
|Device boots
|yes
|Yes
|yes
|Yes
|sometimes
|Sometimes
|-
|-
|Basic functionality
|Basic functionality
|yes
|Yes
|sometimes
|Sometimes
|no
|No
|-
|-
|Software updates
|Software updates
|sometimes
|Sometimes
|no
|No
|no
|No
|}<!-- Please expand chart  -->
|}<!-- Please expand chart  -->
==Impact on consumer rights==
Discontinuation bricking, similar to [[planned obsolescence]], harms the consumer by making a product they paid for eventually stop functioning, resulting in loss of ownership of the product as its functionality is stripped away. This forces the user to buy a new product.


===Dependence on third-party bypasses===
After a product has been bricked, a consumer may wish to repair their product and return it to a functioning state. De-bricking a product is not impossible, but it can be difficult depending on the severity of the problem. Consumers will inevitably look to third parties for methods to bypass the bricking, which may expose them to [[security]] and safety risks. Bypasses may end up being expensive, with more complicated, server-dependent products requiring potentially complex server infrastructure.


==Impact to consumer rights==
Due to [[DMCA Section 1201|section 1201]] of the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]] (DMCA), if there is a software lock put in place by the manufacturer that prevents the user from de-bricking their product, it would become even more difficult to do so, as it would, in most cases, be illegal for someone to de-brick, or teach them how to de-brick, their product.
Discontinuation bricking, similarly to [[planned obsolescence]], harms the consumer by making a product they paid for to stop functioning, resulting to loss of ownership of said product, as functionality is stripped from it.
 
===Dependence on third-party bypasses===
After a product has been bricked, a consumer may wish to repair their product and return it back to a functioning state. De-bricking a product is not impossible but can be difficult depending on the severity of the problem. Consumers will inevitably look to third-parties for methods to bypass the bricking which may open the user to [[security]] and [[safety]] risks. Bypasses may end up being expensive, with more complicated server-dependent products needing potentially complicated server infrastructure.


===Resale falsification===
===Resale falsification===
Products are often resold on the internet, and may be put on sale before a discontinuation bricking occurs with valid information but become invalidated afterwards causing [[false advertising]]. This has many implications:
Products are often resold on the internet and may be put on sale before discontinuation, leading to the occurrence of valid information that becomes invalidated afterwards, causing [[false advertising]]. This has many implications:


#Sellers may be completely unaware of the discontinuation bricking and will continue selling their product, hurting seller reputation once the product becomes bricked and no longer functions afterwards.
#Sellers may be utterly unaware of the discontinuation, resulting in their product becoming bricked, and they will continue to sell it, potentially harming their reputation once the product becomes bricked.
#Buyers may be completely unaware of the discontinuation bricking and will buy the product, only to have it not function and harming the buyer.
#Buyers may be unaware of the discontinuation and purchase the product, only to find it does not function.
#Customers may learn about the discontinuation and decide to sell the product without providing adequate details, even without any malicious intent.
#Customers may learn about the discontinuation and decide to sell the product without providing adequate details, even without any malicious intent.


==Environmental impact==
==Environmental impact==
Discontinuation bricking will inevitably generate waste given that the product is no longer functional, and consumers will be forced to discard the product.
Discontinuation bricking will generate e-waste, as the product will no longer be functional, and consumers will be forced to discard it.


==Warning signs of discontinuation bricking==
==Warning signs of discontinuation bricking==
Discontinuation bricking is usually a consequence of a remote service shutting down that the product depends on for complete functionality. The risk of discontinuation bricking occurring can be assessed beforehand by observing warning signs, such as:
Discontinuation bricking typically occurs when a remote service that the product relies on for complete functionality is shut down. The risk of discontinuation bricking occurring can be assessed beforehand by observing warning signs, such as:


<ol>
*'''Product requires an internet connection to a remote server:''' If a product requires a connection to a remote server for functionality, there is a risk that the company may shut down the server, rendering some, if not all, functions of the product inoperable. These connections may be necessary because:
<li>'''Product requires an internet connection to a remote server:'''</li>if a product requires connection to a remote server for functionality, there is a risk that the company may shut down the server and brick some function, if not all functions of the product. These connections may be necessary because:
<ul>
<li>'''Product requires remote authorization:'''</li> product only works if you can receive authorization from an authorization server. If the authorization server shuts down, login will become impossible. An unusual example being the Spotify Car Thing which stopped functioning after Spotify unauthorized the Car Thing from interacting with the Spotify App API.
<li>'''Product has features dependent on remote sources:'''</li> product may brick if it is unable to access remote information because of server outages.
</ul>


<li>'''Product depends on a phone application to work:'''</li> updates to the app may remove support for the discontinued product. An example being the [[Spotify Car Thing]] which stopped functioning after Spotify unauthorized the Car Thing from interacting with the Spotify App API.<ref>[https://www.motortrend.com/news/spotify-car-thing-music-streaming-device-discontinued/ "Spotify's Oddball In-Car Music Device Is Getting Bricked. Turns Out There's an App For That."] - motortrend.com - accessed 2025-01-25</ref><!-- Maybe include a different example here? It feels a bit redundant considering this was the example for the previous point. --><!-- To be fair we may be better of just merging 1 and 2 and expanding upon 1, there's nearly no difference as the product and app go hand-in-hand -->
*'''Product requires remote authorization:''' The Product only works if you can receive approval from an authorization server. If the authorization server shuts down, logins will become impossible. An unusual example is the [[Spotify Car Thing]] , which stopped functioning after [[Spotify]] unauthorized the Car Thing from interacting with the Spotify App API.
<li>'''Product requires physical input on a regular basis:'''</li> as an example, [[HP Inc.]] printer ink has a [[Digital rights management|DRM]] that forces consumers to exclusively use HP ink, and does not allow third-party cartridges. If HP goes out of business or decides to stop producing their ink cartridges, any printer depending upon it will become bricked, effectively discontinuing the printer even if not explicitly stated.
</ol>
==Examples==
[[Spotify Car Thing]]


[[Sonos]]
*'''The product has features that depend on remote sources:''' If the product is unable to access remote information due to server outages, it may become bricked.


[[wikipedia:Orphaned_technology|Orphaned technology]] on wikipedia.org
*'''The product relies on a phone application to work:''' Updates to the app may remove support for the discontinued product. An example being the Spotify Car Thing, which stopped functioning after Spotify unauthorized the Car Thing from interacting with the Spotify App API.<ref>{{cite web
|first=Alexander |last=Stoklosa |title=Spotify's Oddball In-Car Music Device Is Getting Bricked. Turns Out There's an App For That. |url=https://www.motortrend.com/news/spotify-car-thing-music-streaming-device-discontinued/ |website=Motor Trend |date=24 May 2024 |access-date=8 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240525231014/https://www.motortrend.com/news/spotify-car-thing-music-streaming-device-discontinued/ |archive-date=25 May 2024}}</ref><!-- Maybe include a different example here? It feels a bit redundant considering this was the example for the previous point. --><!-- To be fair we may be better off just merging 1 and 2 and expanding upon 1, there's nearly no difference as the product and app go hand-in-hand -->


[[Logitech Harmony Link hub]]<ref>https://support.logi.com/hc/en-us#!?return_to=%2Fhc%2Fen-us%23!%2Fs%2Fquestion%2F0D55A0000745EkC%2Fharmony-link-eos-or-eol</ref><ref>https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/11/8/16623076/logitech-harmony-link-discontinued-bricked</ref>
*'''The product requires regular physical input:''' For example, [[HP Inc.]] printer ink has a [[Digital rights management|DRM]] mechanism that forces consumers to use HP ink exclusively and does not allow third-party cartridges. If HP goes out of business or decides to stop producing its ink cartridges, any printer dependent on it will become bricked, effectively discontinuing the printer, even if not explicitly stated.
*Remote initial activation of any kind (e.g. phone based code or internet based), even if the product is CD based, has a perpetual license and requires no internet connection to run. [[Rosetta Stone]] recently [[Rosetta Stone bricks legacy CD-based and downloadable software|bricked their legacy CD products and downloadable software]] by taking down their activation servers and refusing to give user activation codes over the phone.


[[Nest Revolv Hub]]<ref>https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2016/04/nest-reminds-customers-ownership-isnt-what-it-used-be</ref><ref>https://www.zdnet.com/article/revolv-is-dead-google-killed-it-long-live-innovation/</ref>
==See also==
*[[Spotify Car Thing]]
*[[Sonos]]
*[[Telstra|Telstra TV (Roku-Powered Streaming Devices)]]


[[Astro Amazons security robot|Astro Amazons security robot.]]<ref>https://www.inc.com/amazon-bricking-its-astro-for-business-robots.html</ref> <ref>https://press.aboutamazon.com/2023/11/introducing-astro-for-business-a-customizable-security-solution-bringing-peace-of-mind-to-owners-of-small-and-medium-sized-businesses</ref>
*[[Planned obsolescence]]
*[[End of life product|EOL - end-of-life product]]
*[[Stop Killing Games]]
*[[Rosetta Stone bricks legacy CD-based and downloadable software|Rosetta Stone bricks legacy perpetual license CD software]]
*[[List of products bricked by discontinuation]]


Neos SmartCam security camera<sup>[https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6569550/which-security-camera-neos-smartcams-now-defunct <nowiki>[8]</nowiki>]</sup>
==See also==


==Also see==
*[[Remote disabling]]


*'''[[Planned obsolescence]]'''
==References==
*'''[[Software degradation and lock-out]]'''
{{Reflist}}
*[[End of life product|EOL - end-of-life product]]
*


==References==
[[Category:Anti-consumer practices]]
[[Category:Anti-Consumer_Practices]]
[[Category:Common terms]]
[[Category:Common terms]]
[[Category:Theme]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]
[[Category:Articles in need of additional work]]
[[Category:Articles under development]]
[[Category:Bricking]]
<references />
[[Category:Discontinuation bricking]]
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