As reported previously on SN, McFlurry machines have been at the centre of arguments about Copyright vs the Right to Repair. Now it seems that the US Copyright Office have delivered a victory to McDonalds Franchisees and third parties by allowing them to bypass the Technological Protection Measures (TPM) to repair the devices.
The final rule adopted by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden was based on recommendations made by Shira Perlmutter, the register of copyrights and director of the US Copyright Office. The ruling came in the ninth triennial proceeding to determine exemptions under Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The process provides exemptions for the next three years to "the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that effectively control access to copyrighted works."
"The Register recommends adopting a new exemption covering diagnosis, maintenance, and repair of retail-level commercial food preparation equipment because proponents sufficiently showed, by a preponderance of the evidence, adverse effects on the proposed noninfringing uses of such equipment," the Register's findings said.
Opposition to the change came from McDonalds corporate and the machine manufacturers, Taylor Company, as well as the Entertainment Software Association, Motion Picture Association, and Recording Industry Association of America
For those who enjoy a punny good time:
The change should "spark a flurry of third-party repair activity and enable businesses to better serve their customers," Rose said. "While we are disappointed that the Register recommended a narrower exemption than we had proposed, this does not soften our enthusiasm. We will continue to chip away at half-baked laws blocking the right to repair, sprinkling consumer victories as we go. Today's win may not be parfait, but it's still pretty sweet."
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From WSJ [original, paywalled], Vice [quoted below], and others:
McFlurry machines are complicated pieces of equipment designed so that only certified technicians employed by the Taylor, the manufacturer, can service them. When one breaks, even if it's a simple fix, the McDonald's franchise has to call in a special repair person to fix it. A company called Kytch invented a device that lets franchise owners do basic repairs and diagnostics without calling in the expensive repair person. According to Motherboard's reporting, some techs and McDonald's franchises know how to bypass safety features to get the machine operational.
Kytch busted Taylor's monopoly on repairing the ice cream machines and, according to Kytch, Taylor retaliated by stealing its devices and reverse engineering them. Kytch won a legal victory in early August when a judge awarded it a temporary restraining order against Taylor and ordered the ice cream machine manufacturer to return ill-gotten Kytch devices.
The McDonald's ice cream machine problem is a right to repair issue. Franchises pay for a McFlurry machine and then have to keep paying Taylor to keep it running. It's an issue that mirrors Apple charging exorbitant amounts [for] basic iPhone repairs or John Deere forcing farmers to use their authorized dealers to get a repair.
In July, Joe Biden signed an executive order that detailed his administration's plans to make it easier for everyone to repair their own stuff. Later that month, the FTC formally adopted a right-to-repair platform and promised to investigate companies for possible violations of antitrust and anti-competition laws. According to the FTC letter viewed by The Wall Street [Journal], it appears that looking into what's going on with the ice cream machines is part of that push.
Related:
This app tells you if your local McDonald's ice cream machine is down
Is Your Local McDonald's Ice Cream Machine Broken? Check the McBroken App
McBroken
Previously:
Bot Orders $18,752 of McSundaes Every 30 Minutes to Find If Machines are Working
https://qz.com/mcdonalds-broken-ice-cream-machines-federal-regulators-1851339089
Federal regulators want to fix McDonald's broken ice cream machines, and they're asking to expand right-to-repair laws to address the issue. In a letter to the U.S. Copyright Office on Thursday, regulators asked for commercial soft-serve machines to be exempt from current laws making them difficult to repair. The laws also make it more difficult for you to get a McFlurry.
"In the Agencies' view, renewing and expanding repair-related exemptions would promote competition in markets for replacement parts, repair, and maintenance services," said the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission in a joint letter.
The McDonald's broken ice cream machines have found themselves at the center of the right-to-repair movement. The reason McDonald's ice cream machines are always down is because of copyright law. Only technicians licensed by the company that made the device are allowed to touch the machines, and they charge over $300 for a 15-minute servicing, according to the letter. The DOJ and the FTC identified commercial soft-serve machines as one of four device categories that would benefit from an easing of copyright laws.
(Score: 0, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Monday October 28, @03:53AM
You have to beg every three years for an exception, then have the Copyright Cartel there to argue not to grant it.
(Score: 3, Informative) by krishnoid on Monday October 28, @04:37AM (1 child)
Nope this is straight from the article, for real. I'm a little surprised John Deere and Apple didn't join in the chorus, but i guess they've given up that fight.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Unixnut on Monday October 28, @10:55AM
Yeah, perhaps its my past memories of the RIAA and MPAA dealing with audio sharing and P2P, but I always feel if you have those two backing you up in your corner, then you should probably re-think the path you have taken.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by looorg on Monday October 28, @10:09AM (2 children)
So they are allowed to, but will they? It's a franchise business after all, they are not allowed to do or serve whatever they want are they? If they start using these non-approved parts to repair the McFlurry machine by unsanctioned parts or technicians perhaps other orders for things will just get lost in transport. Oh you didn't get any McFlurry powder this week? So sad .... Or the things/ingredients will start to arrive in special containers that just slot into the approved machines otherwise they won't spit out any McFlurries.
I wonder if a lot of them won't still use the technician with the special manual and the special screwdriver cause they won't want to anger the people above them.
(Score: 5, Interesting) by Thexalon on Monday October 28, @11:03AM
I suspect that would lead to FTC action. At least so long as Lina Khan is in charge of it - she's been all about busting corporations for acting anti-competitively, which is great because that's supposed to be her job.
Vote for Pedro
(Score: 2) by Frosty Piss on Monday October 28, @09:04PM
The McFlurry mix is the exact same soft-serve ice cream mix that Wendy's (and probably many others) uses. The machine is a bit unique in that it mixes flavor concentrates into vanilla soft-serve mix to create a wide selection of flavors of both soft-serve (the McFlurry), and shakes. Chocolate and Vanilla soft-serve bases are the same as everyone else uses. It is an entirely separate machine that mixes in the particulate matter such as cookie crumbs and M&M's, a machine that looks like a mounted drill that you shove a plastic spoon into...
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Monday October 28, @09:46PM (3 children)
Arguably?
Arguably? Feck, i never go to McToilets. How big a nuisance can it be?
Nuisance. Pffffttttt... ask someone in Ukraine how big a nuisance it is.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by Mykl on Tuesday October 29, @05:14AM (2 children)
Translation: "It doesn't affect me, therefore it shouldn't affect anyone"
For those who actually do go McDonalds (and there are a lot of them!) it's a massive pain in the butt. It's also a massive pain for the franchisees who are trying to run a business with one arm tied behind their back by corporate. There is also the wider issue of commercial Right to Repair which may affect you later when it comes to your car, washing machine or some other appliance. This win may help secure your rights in those other scenarios.
Or the cHiLdReN sTaRvInG iN aFrIcA!
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Tuesday October 29, @12:58PM (1 child)
No, the translation is, is this REALLY one of life's greatest nuisances? Has this EVER been "OMG, this is the worst thing EVAR!" for anyone in the entire world?
Have YOU gone to McToilets and said, "Oh COME ON, DUDE! SHIT, IMMA GONNA DIE IF I DON'T GET A MCFURRY!"? If so, you have a very sheltered life.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 3, Informative) by weirsbaski on Wednesday October 30, @05:34AM
I feel like "one of life's greatest" wasn't meant to be taken literally, that was a tongue-in-cheek joke to make the subject more interesting. And the word "nuisance" only means inconvenient or annoying, if this really was a "IMMA GONNA DIE IF ..." situation they wouldn't have used the frikkin word "nuisance" to begin with...
(Score: 2) by drussell on Tuesday October 29, @01:04PM
I think the most straightforward, yet in-depth explanation of the situation is this documentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrDEtSlqJC4 [youtube.com]
It explains some of the background information, as well as about the Kytch system and software that Jeremy O'Sullivan created to basically solve most of the issues with the terrible user interface and understanding why the maintenance and cleaning modes fail, etc. The franchisees that were running that system before MacDonalds put the kibosh on it, forcing people back to always going only to Taylor for support, absolutely loved the helpful, informative interface and detailed explanations, etc. in the Kytch interface.