Press Releases

Downers Grove, Ill. -- The following statement has been issued by the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) and the Entertainment Software Association (ESA):

"We represent diverse industries and businesses that are finding common ground in opposition to Legislative Bill 67 ("Right to Repair"), now before the Nebraska legislature. Our root concern is that this bill will weaken the basic rights that consumers have to security and privacy, as well as endangering intellectual property rights.

Hackers are constantly trying to break into a wide range of devices, including computers, servers, smartphones, and other industrial and consumer electronics. Any weakening of the current standards, including sharing sensitive diagnostic tools and proprietary hardware data, could expose customers to risk. Manufacturers also have strong concerns about unauthorized independent service providers who may take risks or cut corners and provide service without training or following safety standards.

Additionally, manufacturers make significant investments in the development of products and services, and the protection of intellectual property is a legitimate and important aspect of sustaining the health of all industry, including third party software developers who rely upon the device's DRM to protect their software from hackers. However, the bill compromises the intellectual property that creators invested heavily in to develop.

This legislation is, in short, unnecessary and wrong for Nebraskans. It will lead to customer confusion, job losses, and long-term costs not addressed by the bill's proponents."

The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is the world's leading technology association, with approximately 2,000 member companies, 3,000 academic and training partners, over 100,000 registered users and more than two million IT certifications issued. CompTIA's unparalleled range of programs foster workforce skills development and generate critical knowledge and insight –  building the foundation for technology's future. Visit CompTIA online, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. 

ESA offers a wide range of services to interactive entertainment software publishers, including conducting business and consumer research, providing legal and policy analysis and advocacy on First Amendment, intellectual property and technology/e-commerce issues, managing a global content protection program, owning and operating E3 and representing video game industry interests in federal and state government relations. For more information, please visit www.theESA.com or follow us on Twitter at @RichatESA or @ESAGovAffairs.

Dan Hewitt
Vice President of Media Relations and Event Management
Entertainment Software Association
202.223.2400 
[email protected]

Marc Brailov
Vice President, Corporate Communications
CompTIA
630-678-8415
[email protected]