The FTC has sent out a warning to Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo in regards to removing illegal warranty-void-if-removed stickers from their machines.
The FTC or the Federal Trade Commission issued the companies earlier in April regarding the fact that they were in violation of the customers right in taking their devices to third-party repair vendors, specifically in regards to removing the warranty-if-void stickers.
Letters obtained from our friends over at Motherboard showcase the companies in question, which include, Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo, Hyundai, ASUS, and HTC. The letters are all identical in content with slight variations that call out specific wording used by the companies mentioned above. An excerpt of the letter can be read below:
“This letter places you on notice that violations of the Warranty and FTC Acts may result in legal action,” the letters state in bold, adding that the FTC had reviewed warranty language on each manufacturers’ websites and found it to be infringing. “ FTC investigators have copied and preserved the online pages in question, and we plan to review your company’s written warranty and promotional materials after 30 days. You should review the Warranty and FTC Acts and if necessary, revise your practices to comply with the Acts’ requirements. By sending this letter, we do not waive the FTC’s right to take law enforcement action and seek appropriate injunctive and monetary remedies against [company name] based on past or future violations.”
The FTC has specified that the companies in question have been violating the 1975 Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, which in essence states that no manufacturers who produce hardware costing more than $5 USD for a product are allowed to put in place any form of a repair restriction, which in this case refers to the stickers that void the warranty when removed, which is essential in taking apart many consoles and devices.
An excerpt from the Sony letter can be viewed below:
As of right now, none of the aforementioned companies has responded publically to the FFC situation.
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