French group in legal row over “built in obsolescence”

Printers - especially those made by the companies HP, Canon, Brother, and Epson - featured heavily in the open letter complaint from the association (L'association Halte à l'obsolescence programmée (HOP)).

The group condemned technology companies for allegedly deliberately building machines that are designed to break after a few years or months, forcing consumers to buy new products, reported French news source France Info.

The complaint, launched by the HOP group on Monday, accused manufacturers of “deliberately” shortening the life of printers and accessories such as ink cartridges, with the latter appearing to be empty and broken long before they should actually wear out.

The HOP is calling it “the first French legal action based on the offence of built in obsolescence”.

This “built in obsolescence” has long been suspected as a standard practice among manufacturers across the world, as an alleged means of ensuring that consumers will continually update their technology and other goods.

Since 2015, French law has, in theory, made it illegal in some cases, with up to two years of prison and a fine of €300 000 at risk if companies are found to be definitively building goods designed to break.

In practice, however, it is very difficult to prove.

The European Commission is currently investigating legislation on the issue after a request from the European Parliament.