Opening of a trial for planned obsolescence against Epson: a historic first step
A trial for planned obsolescence has been opened against printer manufacturer Epson in France, marking a historic first. The case alleges that Epson deliberately designs its printers to stop working after a limited number of prints, forcing consumers to buy new devices.
Background
- The French anti-waste law (AGEC, 2020) makes France one of the few countries where "planned obsolescence" — deliberately designing a product to fail or become unusable prematurely — is a criminal offense punishable by fines and prison time.
- Epson is a Japanese electronics giant best known for its printers, projectors, and industrial printing equipment. Printer manufacturers often make more money from replacement ink cartridges than from the printers themselves.
- "Planned obsolescence" lawsuits in France have previously targeted Apple (for slowing iPhones via software updates) and printer-makers such as Canon and HP over ink-locking mechanisms.
- In this case, French consumer group Halte à l'Obsolescence Programmée (HOP) and the environmental NGOs are suing Epson over a firmware update that renders printers unusable when a "maintenance box" (a waste-ink pad) is full — even though the box is a simple, cheap part meant to absorb overflow ink. Users are forced to replace the entire printer or pay for a costly, not-user-serviceable repair, which critics argue is a textbook case of planned obsolescence.