Ars TechnicaNov 20, 2025
HP and Dell disable HEVC support built into their laptops’ CPUs
HEVC licensing gets more expensive in January.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/11/hp-and-dell-disable-hevc-support-built-into-their-laptops-cpus/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social
Show threadNicole Parsons

@arstechnica

Yet another example where "Buying Isn't Owning" from HP's Department of #Enshittification.

The business models of monopolies...

Some poor account rep. or customer service agent: "Yes, I know you bought an HP laptop with this functionality, but we're taking it away after you bought it, ... for reasons"

https://www.techdirt.com/2024/01/19/ubisoft-says-it-out-loud-we-want-people-to-get-used-to-not-owning-what-theyve-bought/

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/03/hp-avoids-monetary-damages-over-bricked-printers-in-class-action-settlement/

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-37408173

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/hp-fails-to-derail-claims-that-it-bricks-scanners-on-multifunction-printers-when-ink-runs-low-2/

https://www.itbrew.com/stories/2024/04/22/lawsuit-says-hp-took-advantage-of-customers-sunk-costs-with-printer-updates-prohibiting-third-party-ink

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2023/02/home-printer-digital-rights-management-hp-instant-ink-subscription/672913/

https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/06/brother_firmware_update_toner/

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Ubisoft Says It Out Loud: We Want People To Get Used To Not Owning What They’ve Bought

We’ve done a metric ton of posts here over the years pointing out one unfortunate trend that has come along with the move from physical products to digital purchases: you don’t own what…

Techdirt
Nov 20, 2025 at 11:18pmWeb
Show threadNicole ParsonsNov 20, 2025

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HP believes captive consumers & Coercive Capitalism is the business model of the future.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/03/customers-fume-as-hp-blocks-third-party-ink-from-more-of-its-printers/

https://gizmodo.com/hp-printers-drm-update-block-third-party-ink-1850211997

https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/smart-office/hp-says-its-new-subscription-plan-will-make-you-hate-your-printer-less-but-will-it/

https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/amazon-changes-licensing-text-when-kindle-books-are-purchased

https://www.dailydot.com/culture/youtube-clippy-pfp/

https://doctorow.medium.com/https-pluralistic-net-2023-12-08-playstationed-tyler-james-hill-2ba28bfdbefc

https://mmos.com/news/ubisoft-revokes-the-crew-licenses

HP outrages printer users with firmware update suddenly bricking third-party ink

HP’s approach to DRM continues rubbing people the wrong way.

Ars Technica
Show threadJacquelineNov 21, 2025

@Npars01 @arstechnica

"You are horrified at our intending to do away with private property. But in your existing society, private property is already done away with for nine-tenths of the population; its existence for the few is solely due to its non-existence in the hands of those nine-tenths. You reproach us, therefore, with intending to do away with a form of property, the necessary condition for whose existence is the non-existence of any property for the immense majority of society."