Thursday, February 21, 2019

Consumer choice in the tech industry (part 4)


The tech consumer is almost being forced to spend money to use certain products. For example, it's rare these days that I can find the software I need and buy to own. Most software companies demand monthly subscription fees to use their software, or the software deactivates. When a company abandons a piece of hardware, it is often the case that the lack of support for that hardware eventually renders it unusable, as software updates necessary for core functionality are no longer provided by the company. Compatibility issues arise without software patches, and eventually the hardware becomes entirely useless and obsolete, forcing the consumer to update to a newer product. An issue that arises for hardware, such as game consoles, is abandonment by software developers who no longer see profit in developing for a platform heading towards obsolescence.

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