Over 8,500 signatures urge stronger Right to Repair protections in Canada

With input from over 8,500 action takers in the OpenMedia community, our submission to the Government of Canada’s recent consultations on the right to repair highlights the strong demand for affordable, repairable devices and their importance to Canadian consumers.

On September 26th, 2024, OpenMedia submitted a detailed report to Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada's (ISED) consultations on the Right to Repair for home appliances and consumer electronics, along with 8,618 petition signatures gathered since August, pushing for stronger Right to Repair laws and full device ownership in Canada.

In the submission, we detailed comments that reflect concerns and priorities of OpenMedia community members on the Right to Repair issue, making it clear that Canadian consumers expect the government to prioritize the development of stronger regulations to combat planned obsolescence, protect consumer rights, and ensure full device and data ownership with holistic solutions.

The current manufacturing practices often push consumers to replace functional devices rather than repair them. Big manufacturers hold all the cards; they not only monopolize repair options by restricting access to parts and limiting software updates for our devices, they undermine consumers’ ownership over devices with outrageous terms of service, making devices we buy nowadays like temporary rentals.

As our government laid the groundwork for potential stronger Right to Repair protections, we urged the government to consider our comments and recommendations that outline key measures that could hold manufacturers accountable for ensuring a fair lifespan of our devices. Here are some key recommendations we made in our submissions:

• Establishing mandatory minimum durability and repairability standards that promote full device and data ownership, starting with home appliances and consumer electronics, to ensure our devices are safe, secure, and fully functional for the long term.
• Creating comprehensive federal policies that raise awareness about the importance of repairability and providing educational resources on data protection and device longevity.
• Fostering fair competition and strengthening local repair initiatives to give consumers real cost-effective means to repair and real options on how to extend device life and functionality.
• Supporting a more resilient and sustainable repair ecosystem through a collaborative approach that includes ongoing dialogue with consumers and consultation with industry stakeholders, and funding for training programs, grants, and certification assistance, especially in communities where affordable, accessible repair services may not naturally emerge. 
• Alignment with international standards, particularly those of the European Union, will not only facilitate cross-border trade but also ensure that products entering our market meet the highest standards of repairability and sustainability, ensuring that our policies are effective and forward-thinking in building a more sustainable and consumer-empowered future within a global context.

We invite you to download a copy of our submission in PDF format to explore the key issues, recommendations, and solutions that the OpenMedia community believes are essential to ensuring full device ownership in Canada's critical Right to Repair movement.