Towards a right to repair for the Internet of Things: A review of legal and policy aspects

Abstract

The way in which consumers engage with, utilise, or discard the technologies in their lives is constantly being reassessed and changed. This paper questions what role the emergent “right to repair” could play in resolving issues posed by the increasing ubiquity of the Internet of Things (IoT). The right gives consumers the ability and freedom to fix their devices, or to fair access to appropriate services that can carry out repair on their behalf. In this paper, firstly we establish the problem space surrounding consumer IoT – i.e., devices that are interconnected via the internet, enabling them to send and receive data. We reflect on hardware, software, and data components that pose legal and policy challenges for data protection, security, and sustainability. Through a literature review we then reflect on the current socio-legal developments that support or oppose changes in the consumer IoT market in regards to repair. We then highlight gaps in the existing literature that should inform future research trajectories in this area. This includes exploring disparities between environmental and consumer autonomy approaches, assessing consistency in regulatory developments, and market prioritisation. Finally, the paper concludes with a series of key insights and recommendations from our analysis including: recognition of the growing e-Waste problem and the inequalities it exacerbates and perpetuates; the need for identification and argumentation for different formulations of “repair” and how these may impact the implementation of a right going forward; the need for identification of the reasoning behind disparities in governmental approaches to the right to repair; and the need to practically translate better IoT design practices into reality.