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HP will pay 1.35 million to users of its printers who could not use compatible cartridges

Some European owners of an HP printer they can receive compensation if they have a model that a firmware update prevented them from using compatible cartridges with it and only allowed them to use original cartridges. The company has decided to reach an agreement to close the dispute it has with the activist group Euroconsumers in this regard, and that has made HP pay an amount to those affected, who did not know that their printers had the function that prevented the use of these compatible cartridges.

The feature in question, known as “Dynamic Security,” limited the functionality of printers that had it when using third-party cartridges that did not have HP chips or circuitry. The compensation that those affected who claim will receive will come from a fund of 1.35 million provided specifically for it by the company.

Dynamic Security was a firmware update from HP shipped to devices that in many cases limited their ability to print without their users knowing, and in many cases made them unable to continue using compatible cartridges that were not equipped with proprietary technology. necessary company. The company launched it in March 2016 to some models of the OfficeJet and OfficeJet Pro ranges, and its mission was to maintain secure communication between the cartridge and the hardware. It was launched in September of that same year.

So if the cartridges didn’t have the company’s original security chip, they didn’t work. What happened is that they sent an error message indicating that the carrier was damaged and that an HP brand toner was required.

The company has already fixed this problem on some of its printer models by updating its firmware again. With the signing of the agreement, those affected have given up following the legal path, although HP has not recognized that it did wrong, nor was it guilty of the problem, which acted as a kind of DRM system with the cartridges. The agreement reached by HP for Europe joins those already reached in Australia and the United States a few months ago.

There are consumers in Belgium, Spain, Italy and Portugal who can receive compensation thanks to this agreement. They are those who have purchased certain models of HP printers between September 1, 2016 and November 17, 2020. If you have an affected model, you can find out in this online calculator that the OCU has provided on its website, which also It will allow you to know everything you need to know the amount that corresponds to you, and how to claim it.

Those affected will receive between 20 and 50 euros per affected printer, depending on the model. Consumers can additionally receive another 45 euros if they can offer proof of having suffered «potential concrete losses«which brings the total amount that those affected can receive to 95 euros.

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