The European Commission will propose legislation to prohibit the use of chargers other than USB-C, for products released in European Union countries.
This law proposes that only USB-C charging will be allowed. That means, smartphone manufacturers like Apple that release iPhones with Lightning chargers in the future could be caught up in this rule.
Over the past few years, the European Commission has been working with manufacturers voluntarily ditching rival charging technologies. The agency claims to have reduced the number of different types of cell phone chargers from 30 to just three.
It doesn't stop there, as quoted from Pocket-Lint, now the European Union feels the need for legislation to force the remaining technology companies to comply with charger "solutions" in general.
"European consumers have been frustrated for quite some time with incompatible chargers piling up in their drawers. We're giving the industry plenty of time to find their own solutions. Now it's time for legislative action to regulate chargers that apply generally," said Executive Vice President for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age, Margrethe Vestager.
"This will be an important win for our consumers and the environment, and is in line with our ambitions for green and digital solutions."
To note, the new iPhone 13 series of devices supports Lightning charging, although they are also compatible with Apple's Qi and MagSafe wireless chargers. The European Commission also proposed that fast charging technology be harmonized across brands.
"This will help prevent different manufacturers from unfairly limiting charging speeds and will help ensure that charging speeds are the same when using any compatible charger for the device," the EU Commission said.
But this law proposal may not be coming in the near future. Legislative changes of this kind, need to go through the approval of the European Parliament and European Council Members first, then there will be a two-year transition period for the industry to adapt.
