HP disables its customers’ printers to use competing ink cartridges and justifies them with the need to ensure their safety
HP is disabling customer printers that use competing ink cartridges. The manufacturer is pursuing remote application for updates that have the effect of preventing printers from working if they are not equipped with certified ink cartridges. The company justifies it by the need to ensure consumer safety. The chart reignites debate about how printer manufacturers erode user ownership rights to benefit their businesses.
I was printing a lot of documents for an urgent job and had to change the cartridge. Unbeknownst to me, HP electronically broke into my apartment overnight and disabled my printer, demanding a ransom if I didn’t use their ink. I refused and refused to do so, the owner of the printer reported.
For its part, the company justifies the maneuver by pointing out that third-party toner cartridges increase the security risk. A system is only as strong as its weakest link. We’re seeing third-party ink cartridges equipped as entry points for hackers, says HP’s security manager.
This complaint follows several other cases with similar causes. I ended up with an error message on my computer telling me that my HP Office Jet Pro printer has been remotely disabled by the manufacturer. When I went to the HP website to check it turned out that the credit card I used to sign up for the HP Instant Ink service had expired, which is why HP turned it off, informs the netizen who owns the HP printer.
The truth is, HP Mail owners have some ink cartridges attached to their printers to cover their expected printing needs. Use of these is subject to a subscription link. If this is exceeded, the company charges an additional fee for each new page printed. If the user refuses to pay the subscription or additional costs, the printer stops working, even if the cartridge still has ink. Accordingly, the company considers the expiration of the plaintiff’s card as a refusal to pay the subscription fee.
These are complaints about the cartridge renewal service provided by the printer manufacturer. It’s a fact, original ink cartridges are very expensive. To respond to this situation, the company has, since 2016, set up HP Inc’s subscription for a range of web-connected printers. The company’s promise through this service is to help consumers achieve significant savings. So far it has promoted the Free Ink For Life offer which allows users to print 15 pages per month for free. After this class, you must go to the exit according to the fee schedule set by the company.
These situations illustrate how printer manufacturers erode users’ property rights to benefit their businesses. This phenomenon is not new. In 2016, several users of HP printers in North America complained that their HP printer no longer worked with third-party cartridges. The discovery came after applying a firmware update that introduced DRM making printers compatible only with original cartridges. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) sent a letter to the CEO of HP asking him to apologize to the company’s customers and to restore the ability to use third-party cartridges. In the third quarter of 2018, HP agreed to pay $1.5 million in compensation to the 2.4 million US HP printer owners affected by the developments. In the last quarter of 2018, the manufacturer Epson (one of the leading in France) again came under fire from American consumers for the same reasons.
In fact, many printer manufacturers are affected by practices of this kind. We can already point to a complaint filed in 2017 by the HOP (Halte l’Obsolescence Program) association against X for software obsolescence and deception to see Canon and Brother expand the list.
Postings from affected printer users say they can be forced to use third-party ink cartridges. The method consists of three steps: disabling automatic updates; download old firmware; Install it.
And you?
What do you think of such practices by printer manufacturers? What do you think is the recommended printer manufacturer at the moment? Why ?
See also:
3D printing: HP has launched a machine that makes things not from plastic, but from steel
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