Last week I like many others watched the leaders of large US tech firms get grilled by the US House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust Law. The CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google struggled to answer Congressional representatives’ questions about their abuse of dominance in various markets, from advertising to online shopping and apps. Many felt real catharsis in watching these powerful men squirm from their corporate offices via video link.
However, as an activist for better, longer-lasting electronics, I felt the Subcommittee missed a great opportunity to put Amazon, Apple and Google on the spot about how they use their dominant position to shorten the lives of consumer electronics.
This impacts everybody directly, in terms of the cost of buying and using devices. But it also has a profound material and climate impact on the planet.
