An extensive bill aimed at promoting economic competition and signed on Friday by President Joe Biden, calls on the Federal Trade Commission to enact regulations to limit anti-competitive restrictions that prohibit consumers from repairing their own gadgets on their own terms.
Biden specifically called on the FTC to remove "unfair anti-competitive restrictions on the right to repair by third parties or on self-repair gadgets, as restrictions imposed by powerful manufacturers prevent the public from repairing their own equipment."
The bill is a major victory for proponents of the right to repair who have long been asking for the option to repair their technological devices themselves or through third parties, and not just from the manufacturer.
The right of repair states that everyone must have access to the OEM parts, manuals and software required to perform these repairs. Major gadget makers have been pushing to prevent this kind of accessibility in repair, but the right-of-way movement has grown a lot in recent years.
In particular, Biden targeted mobile phone makers, who "impose restrictions on repairs, making them very expensive and time consuming, limiting the distribution of spare parts, diagnostic tools, and repair tools."
In a statement, PIRG Director of Repair Rights Nathan Proctor said, "It was a great day for the right to repair our devices."
“More repair options help save money and reduce downtime. This is a victory. "
