The EU Passed The Law On The “Right to Repair”
The law aims to reduce electrical waste as part of an environmental protection program.
The law requires companies to ensure that at least 15 key replacement parts are available within five years of a phone being released.
According to the document, within five years, smartphone manufacturers will have to provide service centers with critical parts for each model. The parts list includes 15 items, including batteries, the requirements for which have also changed. They should retain at least 83% charge after 500 charge cycles.
The explanatory note to the document states that the law aims to increase the average duration of the smartphone use cycle in order to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. In addition to smartphones, the new document will also affect push-button phones and tablets.
In addition to hardware, the new offerings also apply to software – security updates will be released within five years after the release of the model on the market, and updates related to the modernization of functionality – within three years. In particular, this may affect most manufacturers of Android smartphones, which usually provide OS updates only in the first years after the release.
In response, smartphone makers argue that making more spare parts available will increase plastic consumption. In particular, the industry association Digital Europe argues that such an overproduction of components will lead to resource overruns, reduced material efficiency and increased cost of goods for consumers.
