Repair monopoly

A repair monopoly is an aftermarket monopoly where a company controls the market for repairing and maintaining their products, making it difficult, or even impossible for anyone to be able to fix them. This can take the form of making it challenging or prohibitively expensive for individuals or independent third parties to get access to parts, manuals, or diagnostic tools. The purpose of repair monopolies is to steer customers back to the manufacturer’s own repair services or encourage the purchase of new equipment instead of repairing it.^[1]

Repair monopolies have been found to lead to higher prices, increased delays, reduced serviceability, and less choice for consumers.^[2]

See also

• Right to repair
• Repairability
• John Deere