Norway's Forbrukerrådet, the government-funded Norwegian Consumer Council, published an 80-page report on February 27, arguing that companies across the tech industry are systematically degrading hardware and software after the point of sale to extract additional revenue from locked-in consumers. The report, titled "Breaking Free: Pathways to a Fair Technological Future," singles out connected devices, printers, video games, and cars as categories where the practice is most acute.
The report refers to this practice as “enshittification,” a gradual, three-stage process in which a company initially attracts users with a genuinely useful service, then degrades that service to benefit business customers, and finally squeezes both groups to maximize returns for shareholders. According to the Forbrukerrådet, digital products are uniquely vulnerable to this cycle because manufacturers can alter them remotely after purchase through software updates. Below, you can see a video the group created about the issue as well.
