Norwegian gov't consumer watchdog calls out ‘enshittification’ of video games, connected devices, and others — claims hardware deliberately degraded after purchase

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.

A Day in the Life of an Ensh*ttificator - YouTube

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“Companies can degrade the functionality of your car or effectively destroy your connected washing machine with a software update,” says the report, going on to call out printer ink cartridges, smart home devices that lose features or require subscriptions post-purchase, and connected vehicles where functionality is gated or removed over time, such as Tesla’s self-driving feature which has switched to a subscription-only service as of February 14. The report also describes how freemium games use forced ad breaks and in-game virtual currencies to convert what were once single-purchase titles into recurring revenue streams

On right to repair, the report notes that the EU Right to Repair Directive, entering into force on July 31, will require manufacturers to reduce parts pairing and allow third-party repairs. This is likely to be a huge thorn in the side of printer manufacturers and device ecosystems that have historically tied consumers to proprietary consumables and service networks.

Alongside the report, the Forbrukerrådet and 28 co-signers — including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Access Now, and Cory Doctorow — sent an open letter to EU policymakers on February 27, urging stronger enforcement of the Digital Markets Act and the GDPR, and pushing back against the European Commission's "Digital Omnibus" package, which the letter argued risks diluting existing consumer protections.

The collective is pushing toward the EU Digital Fairness Act, which the Commission included in its 2026 work program with a proposal expected in Q4 2026. The act is expected to target dark patterns, influencer marketing, addictive design, and unfair personalization across digital products and services.

A public consultation that closed in October 2025 drew roughly 3,000 responses in its first two weeks alone, many from gamers pushing for provisions that would prevent publishers from disabling titles consumers have already purchased — a campaign known as Stop Killing Games.

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