First up a reminder, this post on life in 2030 was removed from the website of the World Economic Forum, currently on Day II of the 2022 Davos get-together:
Welcome to 2030. I own nothing, have no privacy, and life has never been better
And from CNET, March 24:
Apple Plans Subscription Model for iPhone, Other Hardware Products, Report Says
Owning Apple products could be a thing of the past
Apple might implement a subscription model for future hardware products including iPhones, Bloomberg reported Thursday.
If a subscription model were applied, customers wouldn't own Apple products, but would pay a monthly fee to use Apple products, like a person paying rent. While still in development, the subscription service could reportedly launch by next year and be bundled into AppleCare and Apple One plans.
According to Bloomberg, the plan would allow customers to subscribe to hardware with their Apple ID or App Store account. This wouldn't be a payment installment program, and the monthly fee wouldn't be a portion of the price of the product split up into 12- or 24-month increments. The fee would depend on which device someone chooses.
Program subscribers could also have the option to swap out their devices for the latest model upon release. Apple historically releases new models of its products once a year.
Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment....
....MUCH MORE
And from The Verge, because the government said right to repair is a right, May 21:
Apple shipped me a 79-pound iPhone repair kit to fix a 1.1-ounce batteryI’m starting to think Apple doesn’t want us to repair them
Apple must be joking.
That’s how I felt again and again as I jumped through hoop after ridiculous hoop to replace the battery in my iPhone Mini. Part of that was the repair process — mostly, it was how difficult Apple makes it to even get there.
Last month, Apple launched its Self-Service Repair program, letting US customers fix broken screens, batteries, and cameras on the latest iPhones using Apple’s own parts and tools for the first time ever. I couldn’t wait. I’d never successfully repaired a phone — and my wife has never let me live down the one time I broke her Samsung Galaxy while using a hair dryer to replace the screen. This time, armed with an official repair manual and genuine parts, I’d make it right.
That Apple would even let me buy those parts, much less read its manuals and rent its tools, is a major change of pace for the company. For years, Apple has been lobbying to suppress right-to-repair policies around the country, with the company accused of doing everything it can to keep customers from repairing their own phones. It’s easy to see this as a huge moment for DIY advocates. But having tried the repair process, I actually can’t recommend it at all — and I have a sneaking suspicion that Apple likes it that way....
....MUCH MORE, so much more
From those wonderful folks who bring us Davos, Existence as a Service!
Yes you can now purchase your existence for periods as short as one hour using WEFcoin and the EaaS platform...
And right to repair for a very long time. As noted in one of dozens of RtR posts:
You didn't thinks all those posts on John Deere and "Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc." were simply about tractors and textbooks did you? I mean, sure they were, but they were also about whether you own the stuff you buy and if the Supreme Court would uphold the First Sale Doctrine.
