The FTC can stop companies from making electronics spoil like milk

Imagine buying a carton of milk, only to find that it spoils not due to natural processes, but because the dairy company remotely flipped a switch. Now, imagine this happening to your expensive smart fridge, your child’s laptop or your home security system. Welcome to the world of “ownership expiration dates,” where the devices we buy come with hidden timers that can add paywalls or render them useless at the whim of manufacturers.

Ownership expiration dates are everywhere and threaten to leave us in a world where nothing’s designed to last. In the latest high-profile example, JuiceBox announced the apps that provide features to their consumer electric vehicle chargers will stop working and that its “commercial charging stations will lose functionality in the absence of software continuity.” In the same week, Mazda started charging $10 per month for remote start features, which were previously free. In August, the $1,695 Snoo smart bassinet suddenly locked features behind a subscription. In June, Spotify announced that its Car Thing will become a useless paperweight a few years after its release. These are not just inconveniences: They violate our right to own what we buy and create a significant amount of electronic waste.

E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream, and Americans throw out 500 pounds a second. Short-lived technology wastes the critical minerals we need to power our phones, laptops, electrical vehicles and solar panels. The increasing demand for these minerals is driving companies to propose we mine them in untouched areas of the deep-sea. However, the world currently throws away more of some of these minerals as e-waste each year than we are likely to produce annually from deep-sea mining, at least within the next decade. The solution to the critical minerals challenge, it turns out, does not begin at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, but with products designed to last.

When we purchase a product, we expect to be able to do whatever we want with it, whenever we want to — not to be at the mercy of a company’s whims or financial problems. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has the power to give us back that power by implementing clear guidelines on how manufacturers treat essential software support by:

1. Requiring manufacturers to disclose on packaging each product’s guaranteed minimum support time.
2. Mandating that core device functionality remains intact even if internet connectivity or software updates cease.
3. Requiring tools that allow for reuse after support ends.
4. Protecting the right for anyone to make solutions that extend device lifespans.
5. Educating manufacturers on how to build longevity into their product designs.

These measures would not only protect consumers but also foster innovation and competition. When consumers can trust that their purchases will retain value and functionality, they’re more likely to adopt new technologies. Moreover, by reducing premature obsolescence, we can reduce electronic waste and its environmental impact.

We don’t have to tolerate ownership expiration dates. For example, last year, school IT administrators reached out to U.S. PIRG’s Designed to Last campaign to share their frustration with short-lived Chromebooks. They were having to replace perfectly functional laptops simply because Google decided to stop updating their software after as few as four years. These schools were stuck on a treadmill of disposability.

In response, I was able to organize tens of thousands of PIRG supporters, teachers, parents, and students to join our call to push back expiration dates. To its credit, Google listened and announced that Chromebooks will now last for 10 years. This victory shows that when consumers demand better, companies can and will respond. However, this is just one battle in a larger war against planned obsolescence.

Our rights of ownership haven’t kept up with technological advances. Our homes and lives are already connected. Nearly all TVs are “smart” and soon we might not be able to find appliances without embedded software. But we don’t have to accept a world where our ownership expires and forces us to replace our phones, appliances, or cars like a forgotten carton of milk in the back of the fridge. The FTC should put an end to arbitrary ownership expiration dates and restore tangible, unfettered ownership in the digital age.