European Union lawmakers have voted overwhelmingly to legislate manufacturers to adopt a shared charging cable standard. In a 582 to 40 vote, the European Parliament said it wants the European Commission, the body that drafts the EU’s laws, to ensure consumers don’t have to buy a new charger each time they upgrade their phone. The Commission has a relatively short deadline to put something together, with lawmakers saying they want the body to table legislation by July at the latest.
The European Parliament also instructed the Commission to think about wireless chargers and how they could be used to reduce electronic waste. It also wants the body to find ways for the EU to collect and recycle more cables and chargers. “There is ‘an urgent need for EU regulatory action’ to reduce electronic waste and empower consumers to make sustainable choices,” the EU said. Lawmakers didn’t specify what charging standard manufacturers should adopt in Thursday’s resolution. However, given the growing ubiquity of USB-C, the Commission is likely to lean toward the relatively new standard.
The European Commission, which acts as the executive for the EU, has been pushing for a common charger for more than a decade. However, the latest resolution makes legislation more likely, with the EU executive having included the common charger standard as one of the set of actions it plans for this year.
Apple last week pushed back against proposals for binding measures to make smartphones, tablets, and other portable devices use a standardized charging port such as USB-C. Responding to the proposals, the company issued the following statement:
Apple stands for innovation and deeply cares about the customer experience. We believe regulation that forces conformity across the type of connector built into all smartphones stifles innovation rather than encouraging it, and would harm consumers in Europe and the economy as a whole.
More than 1 billion Apple devices have shipped using a Lightning connector in addition to an entire ecosystem of accessory and device manufacturers who use Lightning to serve our collective customers. Legislation would have a direct negative impact by disrupting the hundreds of millions of active devices and accessories used by our European customers and even more Apple customers worldwide, creating an unprecedented volume of electronic waste and greatly inconveniencing users.
We do not believe there is a case for regulation given the industry is already moving to the use of USB Type-C through a connector or cable assembly. This includes Apple’s USB-C power adapter which is compatible with all iPhone and iPad devices. This approach is more affordable and convenient for consumers, enables charging for a wide range of portable electronic products, encourages people to re-use their charger and allows for innovation.
Prior to 2009, the Commission considered mandating that all smartphones use only USB Micro-B connectors which would have restricted the advancement to Lightning and USB Type-C. Instead, the Commission established a voluntary, industry standards-based approach that saw the market shift from 30 chargers down to 3, soon to be two — Lightning and USB-C, showing this approach does work.
We hope the Commission will continue to seek a solution that does not restrict the industry’s ability to innovate and bring exciting new technology to customers.
Any legislation the EU enacts is likely to affect Apple more so than any other company. When the EU renewed its push for a universal charging standard earlier this year, Apple said any regulation would “stifle innovation” and ultimately hurt consumers more than it would help them. It also pointed out that much of the industry is already moving toward integrating USB-C in all their new devices. The EU has been attempting to push manufacturers toward a shared cable standard for more than a decade, arguing that it would reduce electronic waste and make life easier for consumers.
