To mixed reviews, Apple released the iPhone 15 last Tuesday. Sure it’s better, tech analysts seem to concur, just not enough to rationalize the $1,599 price tag, which is what the souped-up version with 1TB of storage will cost you. And they say college is expensive.
But the buzz around the new phone has little to do with the phone itself. No dynamic software, enhanced screen, or other futuristic features broke headlines. Instead, most of the conversation has centered around the phone’s modest USB-C port. Starting with the iPhone 15, Apple has dropped its proprietary Lightning charging port and switched over to what pretty much every other smartphone, computer, tablet, camera, and headphone company in the world uses.
You’d be forgiven for failing to notice the revolution here. The USB-C port is a bit larger and should deliver a faster charge. That’s about all the hardware does. But the change is worth a closer look. The real story is how the European Union spurred the largest company in the world to quickly innovate its most successful product to the benefit of both consumers and the planet.
APPLE didn’t give up its Lightning port willingly. The Lightning port is the company’s own design, and it has been very lucrative; Apple has made billions selling its accessories and licensing the port design to other companies.
The change happened because the European Union, whose 27 members constitute the United States’ second largest trading partner, has mandated that all mobile phones sold in the EU use the USB-C port by 2024. In fact, the new rules will cover phones, tablets, e-readers, digital cameras, video game consoles, headphones and a range of other portable devices. The rules will even cover laptops by the end of 2026.
Now, the average person owns three chargers, of which they regularly use two. The near future? Imagine the same charger that you use for your phone working for pretty much every electronic device, regardless of brand. Think about packing your suitcase for Thanksgiving or a long road trip. Just one cable. The potential benefits to consumers are obvious.
There’s also an environmental benefit. At the start of the smartphone age, back in 2009, there were more than 30 different chargers. Over the years, all the changes and upgrades have produced an astonishing amount of digital waste. The European Union estimates that disposed of and unused charging cables generate more than 11,000 tons of waste per year in the EU alone.
All of that has to go somewhere. Here in Allen County, it ends up in our landfill.
EXECUTIVES from Apple claimed the new regulations would stifle innovation. But the company, whose $2.7 trillion value makes it the largest company in the world, pivoted quickly. The new rules were approved last October, not even a year ago, and Apple already has a new product line in full compliance. And rather than restrict the new design to the EU, Apple decided to make it available worldwide.
At one sixth of the world’s economy, the European Union is too big a market to ignore. Apple, of course, knows that. And so do EU regulators. Those tech companies on the sidelines should seek to replicate what happened here: make their products compliant with European Union regulations and push those products globally. A win for all involved.
GOVERNMENT regulation isn’t alway needed, and governments don’t always get it right. But if there were ever a time for us on this side of the Atlantic to catch on, it’s now. The United States government must quickly confront a whole host of new dangers in the digital age.
The U.S. government is currently trying to make the case that Alphabet abused its dominant search product, Google, to create a monopoly. As a whole, the internet remains largely unregulated. Behemoth tech companies have framed new realities while octogenarian senators try to figure out TikTok.
So as we move into a world with artificial intelligence, self-driving cars and a race to secure the resources needed for renewable energy, governments will play a key role in shaping our future — either by their leadership or the lack of it. The stakes are high. The recent example of the European Union’s ability to force Apple to improve its products is a guide on how the U.S. can thread the needle.
— Tim Stauffer
