Apple fights ‘right to repair’ bill in Nebraska

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Photo: Faris Algosaibi/Flickr CC

Apple delegates have officially opposed the so-called “right to repair” bill in Nebraska that would make it easier for consumers to repair its products.

Should the bill be passed, Apple could be forced to give users and third-party repairers access to its components and service manuals. Company representative Steve Kester warned Nebraska would become a “Mecca for bad actors.”

Legislative bill 67 calls for Nebraska to adopt the Fair Repair Act, which gives consumers and third-party businesses the right to official manufacturer components and repair manuals for the purposes of fixing damaged goods (except vehicles) themselves.

Apple has been fighting this, alongside other consumer technology giants like Google, Microsoft, Nintendo, Samsung, and Sony. The company argues that its products should only be serviced by approved technicians, and that the move would create safety and security and concerns.

Apple also claims that such legislation would expose industry practices and secrets, however, the company has previously told state senator Lydia Brasch that it would stop opposing the bill if smartphones were made exempt from it.

In an effort to encourage those changes, or to get the bill scrapped entirely, Apple sent Kester, who handles the company’s state and local government affairs, to officially oppose it at a private hearing with Brasch on Thursday.

“For now, Apple seems to have won a brief reprieve in its Nebraska pursuits,” reports AppleInsider. “At the conclusion of Thursday’s hearing, the chair of the Judiciary Committee concluded LB67 is unlikely to be considered this year.”

Nevertheless, other states, including Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Tennessee, and Wyoming, are currently considering similar bills that would make it easier for consumers to repair their own devices.

Despite Apple’s fight against consumer repairs, the company recently made changes to its iPhone warranty policy that allows its store technicians and authorized service providers to repair devices that have had third-party displays installed by unauthorized repairers.

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