USB-C) Port in a Storm for EU Consumers by Matthew O’Shea [Page

Page 52 Technology

(USB-C) Port in a Storm for EU Consumers

By Matthew O’Shea, Editor in Chief, SS Law and Business

This autumn, it has been widely reported that EU legislators are to standardise charging ports for consumer electronics devices such as smartphones, tablets, cameras, and headphones. On September 23 2021, the European Commission announced the proposal which, once adopted, will see the EU make USB-C the universal charging port for consumer electronics. The Commission has noted that “[t]his will make it easier for consumers to see if their existing chargers meet the requirements of their new device or help them to select a compatible charger.”

The proposal, a revised Radio Equipment Directive, will also “unbundle the sale of chargers from the sale of electronic devices.” This means that there will no longer be a requirement that a charger be included in the box with new devices.

Benefits of Standardisation: Convenience and Environmental Impact

This proposal has several potential advantages. From an environmental perspective, fewer unique ports mean that consumers will no longer require drawers full of cables, each slightly different from the last. For this author, who required four different ports to power their devices to write this piece, there is a clear benefit to this. Further, the reduction of e-waste generated by unbundling chargers from boxes has already shown genuine ecological benefits. This may be illustrated by Apple’s decision to remove chargers and headphones from iPhone 12 boxes in 2020. The company has cited this decision as allowing for 70 per cent more product to be fit into shipping containers, thus reducing pollution associated with transit, as well as reducing the requirement to produce such a large quantity of products that may never end up being used. Noted technology commentator, Marques Brownlee, has made the point that people who are buying iPhones in 2020/21 will already own a charger and other accessories. These consumers will also know where to buy additional accessories if they require them, and so do not need to receive new ones each time they purchase a smartphone.

Further, Apple VP of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives, Lisa Jackson, has stated that Apple is acutely aware of the over “700 million pairs” of headphones and approximately “2 billion power adapters” that are used by consumers around the world - without even mentioning the amount generated by third-party suppliers. The International Telecommunications Union estimates that “one million tons of external power supplies are manufactured each year.” While it is accepted that these global figures do not directly reflect the EU’s provision of power supplies, Apple’s near 30 per cent smartphone market share in our market of over 500 million people highlights how this remains a problem.

For the EU, and potentially further afield due to the Brussels effect, broad standardisation of ports for consumer electronics brings about a significant opportunity for the tech industry to reduce its carbon footprint. No longer will consumers have to purchase a collection of unique charging cables for each device. The convenience of this development will undoubtedly be felt on a personal level by each consumer afflicted with a growing collection of devices. This should also go to serve businesses by reducing the amount of specialisation required in office spaces. If all devices are running off the same ports, this should simplify processes and thereby increase efficiency for service professionals across the EU.

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Drawbacks: IP and Adding to the Problem?

Some companies - most notably Apple - have raised concerns about the proposal, largely citing an infringement of intellectual property rights by mandating a specific type of charger. Apple has argued that this move “stifles innovation rather than [encourages] it, which in turn will harm consumers in Europe and around the world.” A cynic may argue that this comes from a point of view solely focused on profit-making, with Apple’s specialised Lighting and Thunderbolt ports to make way for USB-C, which can reliably be acquired on the open market. This represents a distinct challenge to Apple’s current positioning, whereby the most reliable and efficient chargers tend to be those produced natively by Apple, and priced at a premium from any Apple retailer, or else certified by Apple’s Made for iPhone/iPad/iPod quality mark.

The proposal, therefore, may indicate an authoritative step on the part of the EU, which encroaches on companies’ ability to design their products freely. However, this argument does not hold up very strongly. Not only does it amount to a step towards greater consumer protection, but it also involves a piece of technology that arguably does not involve a huge amount of specialisation on the part of developers. It is suggested that changing the charging port on devices is a relatively minor change which, while involving some level of cost, should not altogether go to impact upon companies’ bottom lines, and may not be such a drastic change as to impact significantly on intellectual property rights of developers.

For some, mandating USB-C also represents an obligation to purchase new chargers. Many smartphone users will have adapted to using the same lighting cables or micro-USBs for many years, and will now have to seek out new ports to charge their devices. One may argue that this will bring about a significant amount of waste - between 2019 and 2020 alone it has been reported by Counterpoint Research that Apple sold approximately 32 million iPhones, none of which will accept a USB-C port. The above argument, however, may be refuted by acknowledging that the change to USB-C will, for most consumers, represent a one-time change, after which the rate of consumption of chargers for consumer elections will theoretically drop almost entirely, as consumers may use and reuse their chargers as they change devices.

Conclusion

The proposed change to USB-C is one that will likely have an impact on all consumers across the EU.

What may initially seem like a headache, however, is likely a positive step for EU citizens, not only from the perspective that it reduces cable-based difficulties by standardising our electronic needs, but, more importantly, it marks a genuine step in the right direction in our ongoing efforts to reduce the impact of climate change.

For this author, any negatives to be associated with the switch to USB-C are outweighed by the convenience and benefits to be associated with a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to charging our consumer electronics. In our increasingly smart world, where there is a device for everything, there is a lot to be said for only needing one charger.