“Apple could be forced to scrap its iPhone chargers under EU plans to make a universal phone charger law,” Arjun Kharpal reports for CNET. “Under the proposals, mobile phone manufacturers would have to make devices compatible with the universal charger which would hit companies like Apple who have their own design.”
“Lawmakers in the European Parliament’s consumer protection committee said radio equipment devices and their accessories should be ‘interoperable’ to reduce costs to consumers,” Kharpal reports. “‘We urge member states and manufacturers finally to introduce a universal charger, to put an end to cable chaos for mobile phones and tablet computers,’ said German Member of European Parliament (MEP) Barbara Weiler in a statement.”
“‘The voluntary agreement among manufacturers to produce mobile phones compatible with universal chargers is not delivering its full potential,’ British MEP Malcolm Harbour told CNBC. ‘This (new law) would be of high practical benefit to consumers, delivering furthermore cost savings, as well as reducing electronic waste,'” Kharpal reports. “The consumer committee adopted the proposals unanimously with 35 votes in favor.”
“But Benedict Evans, an analyst at Enders Analysis, said that companies have ‘legitimate reasons’ for using different chargers,” Kharpal reports. “If the rules are adopted into law, it could threaten product design, Evans told CNBC. ‘That outcome would be insane because you are moving away from helping consumers to interfering in product design.’ Apple, one of the main companies that would be hit by this reform, already sells adaptors that would conform to the EU’s demand for Micro-USB chargers, but it is unclear if this would satisfy the rules.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Some busybodies’ propensity for creating needless laws while afflicted with unshakable belief in stifling bureaucracies despite boundless evidence to the contrary boggles the logical mind.
How about you fill the potholes first, you meddlesome PITAs?
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]
You blew it MDN. This whole story is OLD and WRONG.
The european law passed a year ago, and clearly says that Apple’s Mini-USB-to-Lightning cable is compliant.
This is NOT an OLD story – it hit the wires this morning September 27 2013, and it’s every where. If you do a simple Google search you’ll get tons of hits. Here’s one of the better other articles I just found –
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2297365/eu-announces-compulsory-common-charger-standard
This story is a rumination of a 2011 situation. It affected all manufacturers. Problem solved for more than a year.
In the EU Apple ships a free micro USB > Lightning adaptor with all their Lightning devices since September 2012. By doing so they meet the EU requirements.
Again, no reason to behave paranoid.
That sounds like they are forcing a micro-USB charger ONLY. So if Apple innovates with a wireless charging system in the near future, it sounds like the EU would still require them to include a micro-USB charger. Insanity!
Apple should definitely stop selling in the EU. People like to talk about Americans are full of themselves but we pale in comparison to the self entitled, imperialist bullshit spewed out by the EU.
Stupid response. That’s the world’s largest economy. That’s like being the world’s largest cattle herder but refusing to sell to McDonalds because it wants its ground beef in round packaging instead of square.
Judging by your comment Americans are full of themselves.
Great idea, Apple should walk away from 25.3% of it’s global sales and a market of 857,000,000 people because the EU wants consumers to be able to use the same chargers regardless of devices and reduce the waste of throwing out charges if you swap from android/windows to Apple or vice versa.
So you think it makes more sense to cripple their phone for the entire world because one group of entitled assholes doesn’t understand technology?
Apple already makes an adapter for this. If they are required to redesign their entire phone, to use a substandard feature then yes, I think for the sake of the rest of the world, they should say fuck you EU live with your android mess.
Apple’s lightning connected is not just for charging. It’s also for transferring data and much much higher rates then mini USB. It’s used to interface with technology in ways mini USB can only dream of. This would cripple a great function of the phone and require a redesign just for a small group of countries and it would affect the rest of the world.
You do seem to have a real problem with “entitled asshole Europeans” just because of a dock connector?
You are correct that Lightning is advanced connector that allows considerable connection options but then again Apple could have implemented a variant of MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link), a connection that allows for charging, syncing and output to an HDTV using a micro-USB port.
I would say the real reason for the proprietary design is the authentication chip built in. I really like Apple products and as for the EU they can be an almighty pain sometimes but in this case I think they are right.
If you don’t see a problem with a multinational company being force to redesign their product to use a less useful third rate standard, because a small group (small next to the size of the rest of the world) is worried about being slightly inconvenienced, then I don’t think there is anything left for us to talk about. I’m glad Apple has people with better decision making skills.
the way mobile phone companies are losing out of buisness and going bankrupt, like Crackberry and HTC, it is better for the politicians to leave things alone and wait for nature to take its natural course
Wow, I hope they make my Honda “interoperable” with a Ferrari.
If this means that I don’t have to shell out $25 every time some dipshit damages or steals a charge cable I am all for it.
Apple should just sue and tie this up in court for a decade. That ought to do it.
Old old old but still relevant.
http://www.douglasadams.com/dna/980707-03-a.html
I have an idea, why not create a law that requires just one OS for all smartphones! That would to put an end to OS chaos for phones!
Why stop there, do the same for computer OS’.
So this should effect all manufactures of all devices. Samsung has 18 different adapters. And do they want to pay to re-engineer Apples products to fit there needless laws?
I hate it when government(s) try to be nannies …! Let the market dictate for goodness sake.
As usual those beauracrats know nothing about the free market and thinks you can regulate to prosperity.
How about use one OS only to save cost? Microsoft??
Who is bribing them?
If the EU wants to start designing phones and chargers let them do so but don’t let them interfere with what the real manufacturers do since there are legitimate reasons for there designs. The lightning connector was developed because of space restrictions in the thinner design of the iPhone 5, iPod Touch, and iPad and iPad mini. If the EU really wants to mandate how manufacturers make there products then maybe they need to make there own products and all of the real manufacturers should pull off all of there products off the shelfs and see what there consumers think of that! EU Stupidity at its best. Wasting government time and money on this stupidity really? I would think the EU has more pressing concerns like the economy over there. Maybe the EU citizens should let the EU know that what there doing is not only Stupid, but wasting a lot of money on something that they really can’t win. Not only that but the products that would be effected would be mind boggling. For what end? Because one stupid EU government official can’t figure out what AC adapter he needs to charge his phone? Maybe clearer instruction manuals and references on how to replace an adapter would be a better goal instead of trying to re-design existing products. Because if this passes, many manufacturers I think will just pull there products off of store shelfs and tell the EU to go FUCK THEMSELVES!
The world is plainly trying to kill off Apple and this is just another nail in their coffin. Like the lone holdout of Microsoft Windows before it, Apple is still seen as a misfit of the world. Apple is seen as the black sheep in a world of white wool. No one will lift a finger to help Apple but there will be plenty willing to put it out of its misery. Android is beloved on this planet and Apple is hated. It’s very difficult to win against such overwhelming odds.
If you can’t compete with Apple then get your political friends to force it to dumb down to your level.
In theory it sounds great. One cable for all of your amassed electronic devices. Who WOULDN’T want this, honestly?!
The problem is, Apple is always pushing and redefining the boundaries of hardware design, making things ever so much smaller. The problem is this universal cable cannot keep up with Apple. It’s a stagnant piece of hardware that has no “body” of individuals to keep it innovative, like Apple has done with the Lightning connector.
Nice idea but poorly thought out and implemented.
Nice to see Americans take some interest in what’s happening in the EU now, even though it’s 4 years since Apple signed up to the European Commission’s memorandum, so this is hardly news. The idea is to make things easier for consumers in the 28 member states and the industry has come together to try and find a solution. At worst, Apple will have to provide free adapters. Consumer protection in the EU generally works very well, recently roaming charges (ie. additional charges for using your phone on a different network when you are in a different EU country) have reduced massively thanks to EU legislation.
I think this is an opportunity for another solution Apple style…..they’ll just implement super fast wireless syncing and charging on the iPhone 6, negating any need for any cables!
A lightning cord that doesn’t fit my wifes 4s and costs $19 bucks doesn’t feel like progress to me – I would like some standardization – is it really any different than having all domestic electrical appliances conform to the same wall socket design?
Eu bullshit that’s y Europe is in so much shit also nobody wants apple to be the same as everybody else that what makes apple unique
All they would need to do is include a Micro USB to Lightning adapter in the box, something that Apple already makes! Done.
What I wan to know is where this “cable chaos” is coming from?
I thought there was only two!! A 30-pin and a lightning connector!!
No, seriously, the only place I have ever seen “chaos” was 1) A great and hilarious movie, and 2) at the concierge at the Ritz hotel offering to charge any phone built since 1980.