Discontinuation bricking: Difference between revisions

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#'''Product requires physical input on a regular basis:''' 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.

==~~How discontinuation bricking impacts~~ consumer rights==

==Impact to consumer rights==

Discontinuation bricking ~~is similar~~ to [[planned obsolescence]] ~~in which it~~ harms the consumer ~~and the environment~~ by making a product they paid for stop functioning, ~~which not only is anti-consumer but also contributes~~ to ~~E-waste.~~

Discontinuation bricking, similarly to [[planned obsolescence]], harms the consumer by making a product they paid for stop functioning, resulting to loss of ownership of said product, as functionality is stripped from it.

~~===How discontinuation bricking contributes to E-waste===~~

~~Discontinuation bricking will inevitably generate waste given that the product is no longer functional, and consumers will be forced to discard the product.~~

~~===Loss~~ of ~~ownership===~~

~~Discontinuation bricking and the possibility that a product may brick itself in the future due to discontinuation, directly harms the ability for a consumer to own their~~ product, as ~~a consumer does not truly own their product if the product~~ is ~~at risk of being bricked and no longer functional~~.

===Dependence on third-party bypasses===

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#Customers may learn about the discontinuation and decide to sell the product without providing adequate details, even without any malicious intent.

==~~=Methods to avoid discontinuation bricking=~~==

==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.

~~#'''Avoid internet and smart products:''' if~~ the product ~~has to connect to an external server to work, the product is vulnerable to being bricked.~~

~~#'''Use [[Open source|open source/schematic]] products:''' open source/schematic products are inherently resistant to discontinuation bricking as the consumer~~ is ~~typically given everything they need to resolve outages themselves.~~

~~#'''Buy products that contractually guarantee source/schematic release on discontinuation:''' if a company decides to include a legally binding agreement to provide source and schematics~~, ~~this is usually a good sign that they are willing to accept blame for discontinuation bricking~~ and ~~take action~~ to ~~alleviate it~~.

== Examples ==

@@ Line 44: / Line 44: @@
 #'''Product requires physical input on a regular basis:''' 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.
-==How discontinuation bricking impacts consumer rights==
+==Impact to consumer rights==
-Discontinuation bricking is similar to [[planned obsolescence]] in which it harms the consumer and the environment by making a product they paid for stop functioning, which not only is anti-consumer but also contributes to E-waste.<!-- "e-waste" may be too specific of a term. "waste" refers to all waste while "e-waste" is more specific towards electronics. Consider changing to "waste" in the final draft. -->
+Discontinuation bricking, similarly to [[planned obsolescence]], harms the consumer by making a product they paid for stop functioning, resulting to loss of ownership of said product, as functionality is stripped from it.
-===How discontinuation bricking contributes to E-waste===
-Discontinuation bricking will inevitably generate waste given that the product is no longer functional, and consumers will be forced to discard the product.
-===Loss of ownership===
-Discontinuation bricking and the possibility that a product may brick itself in the future due to discontinuation, directly harms the ability for a consumer to own their product, as a consumer does not truly own their product if the product is at risk of being bricked and no longer functional.
 ===Dependence on third-party bypasses===
@@ Line 63: / Line 57: @@
 #Customers may learn about the discontinuation and decide to sell the product without providing adequate details, even without any malicious intent.
-===Methods to avoid discontinuation bricking===
+==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.
-#'''Avoid internet and smart products:''' if the product has to connect to an external server to work, the product is vulnerable to being bricked.
-#'''Use [[Open source|open source/schematic]] products:''' open source/schematic products are inherently resistant to discontinuation bricking as the consumer is typically given everything they need to resolve outages themselves.
-#'''Buy products that contractually guarantee source/schematic release on discontinuation:''' if a company decides to include a legally binding agreement to provide source and schematics, this is usually a good sign that they are willing to accept blame for discontinuation bricking and take action to alleviate it.
 == Examples ==