the.com/planned obsolescence

the business model where things are built to die right after the warranty does.

means deliberately designing products with a limited useful life so customers have to buy replacements sooner than necessary.

from coined in the 1930s but crystallized by the phoebus cartel of 1924, when lightbulb makers secretly agreed to cap bulb life at 1000 hours, down from 2500, to keep sales humming.

for instance

phoebus cartel1924 lightbulb makers colluded to shorten bulb lifespan globally

iphone batteriesapple fined 25 million euros in 2020 for throttling old phones

nylon stockingsdupont deliberately weakened fabric strength in the 1940s to boost sales

printer cartridgesepson sued in france for chips halting ink early

the.com/
what’s happening now · the.com · generated