{"id":62042,"date":"2024-09-05T07:00:08","date_gmt":"2024-09-05T07:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ushopwell.com\/ublog\/ftc-urged-to-make-smart-devices-say-how-long-they-will-be-supported\/"},"modified":"2024-09-05T07:00:08","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T07:00:08","slug":"ftc-urged-to-make-smart-devices-say-how-long-they-will-be-supported","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ushopwell.com\/ublog\/ftc-urged-to-make-smart-devices-say-how-long-they-will-be-supported\/","title":{"rendered":"FTC urged to make smart devices say how long they will be supported"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \"Spotify<\/p>\n

Enlarge<\/a> \/<\/span> Spotify released the Car Thing to the general public in February 2022. It’s bricking them in December. (credit: Spotify<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

<\/a><\/div>\n

For some of us, few things are more infuriating than a gadget that stops working due to a software change. As we’ve frequently covered here at Ars, startups and Big Tech companies are guilty of rendering hardware obsolete and\/or stripping it of core functions. Consumer groups are urging the Federal Trade Commission to get involved.<\/p>\n

In a letter<\/a> sent today to Samuel Levine, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, and Serena Viswanathan, associate director of the FTC’s Division of Advertising Practices, representatives from 17 groups, including Consumer Reports, the US PIRG, and iFixit, urged the FTC for “clear guidance” around software tethering. Software tethering, per the letter, is “making functions of a device reliant on embedded software that ties the device back to a manufacturer\u2019s servers.\u201d As it stands, the practice is hurting customers with “unfair and deceptive practices,” such as suddenly locking features behind a subscription<\/a>\u2014like the Snoo smart bassinet<\/a> recently did\u2014or bricking already-purchased devices, which Spotify did with its Car Thing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The letter to the FTC argues that such practices hinder owners’ ability to own their hardware.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read 15 remaining paragraphs<\/a> | Comments<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Powered by WPeMatico<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Enlarge \/ Spotify released the Car Thing to the general public in February 2022. It’s bricking them in December. (credit: Spotify) For some of us, few things are more infuriating than a gadget that stops working due to a software change. As we’ve frequently covered here at Ars, startups and Big Tech companies are guilty of rendering hardware obsolete and\/or stripping it of core functions. Consumer groups are urging the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":62043,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","tve_updated_post":"","tve_custom_css":"","tve_user_custom_css":"","tve_globals":{},"tcb2_ready":0,"tcb_editor_enabled":0,"tve_landing_page":"","_tve_header":"","_tve_footer":""},"categories":[241],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-62042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"yoast_head":"\nFTC urged to make smart devices say how long they will be supported - UshopWell.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ushopwell.com\/ublog\/ftc-urged-to-make-smart-devices-say-how-long-they-will-be-supported\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"FTC urged to make smart devices say how long they will be supported - UshopWell.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Enlarge \/ Spotify released the Car Thing to the general public in February 2022. 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