Microsoft has joined Apple and Google, and together oppose the inclusion of “maintenance rights” into the law. The opposition of these companies has yielded initial results, and legislators in 27 states in the United States have decided not to legislate on “maintenance rights.”
The “maintenance right” in this incident means that hardware manufacturers should disclose the principle drawings of their products and sell spare parts to repair shops. Because for consumers, repair shops are usually cheaper and more convenient.
However, the Security Innovation Center, an association supported by Apple, said that if the so-called “maintenance rights” are really legislated, hackers will obtain digital keys for thousands of Internet-connected products.
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David Edmonson, vice president of TechNet, which opposes the “right to repair” legislative group, said that allowing uncensored third parties to obtain software, tools, parts, and sensitive information would endanger the safety of consumers devices and expose consumers to fraud. Countries around the world are constantly rejecting similar legislation. Last year alone, 25 states in the United States decided not to legislate on the so-called “rights to maintenance”.
A Microsoft spokesperson said in a statement that we believe that consumers have the right to receive safe and effective repair services. We provide consumers with maintenance services to ensure the high quality of maintenance and protect consumers’ privacy and safety.
At the same time, Microsoft President Brad Smith personally discussed the issue of “maintenance rights” with legislators in various states in the United States. It is said that Brad Smith said that the “maintenance rights” legislation is a kind of harm to the development of Microsoft.
However, the Federal Trade Commission disagrees with these companies’ statements. It stated in a recent report that there is no evidence to support manufacturers to restrict repairs. In addition, the report also pointed out that the epidemic has aggravated the impact of maintenance restrictions on consumers. For example, many Apple stores have closed and cannot provide customers with maintenance services.
