The Light Bulb Conspiracy
Planned Obsolescence is the deliberate shortening of product life spans to guarantee consumer demand.
As a magazine for advertisers succinctly puts it: The article that refuses to wear out is a tragedy of business - and a tragedy for the modern growth society which relies on an ever-accelerating cycle of production, consumption and throwing away.
The Light Bulb Conspiracy combines investigative research and rare archive footage to trace the untold story of Planned Obsolescence, from its beginnings in the 1920s with a secret cartel, set up expressly to limit the life span of light bulbs, to present-day stories involving cutting edge electronics (such as the iPod) and the growing spirit of resistance amongst ordinary consumers.
This film travels to France, Germany, Spain and the US to find witnesses of a business practice which has become the basis of the modern economy, and brings back disquieting pictures from Africa where discarded electronics are piling up in huge cemeteries for electronic waste.
We have LED now with 50,000hrs.
I know a young man, struggling, who made a lightbulb that could last for decades and Kiefer promised to share with him; he may had taken this and got it patented-stole the idea and took his invention from him. This young man and I have lots of such stories, whereby the rich and evil will not let us earn money. I wish he could get an employment with someone who would pay him for his mechanical ingenuity; he won the Anderson's award in Virginia for Mechanical Drafting. Jay gave him 95 cents after showing him how to do this. These are the numbers of those who do not harm children. Since when is the United States about only the unskilled bullies get paid for what they steal from others?
Why the advert for amazon?
This place used to host videos.
PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE is a shocking and unacceptable exploitation of consumers
"Planned Obsolescence" is NOT done by or with consumer approval, as the narrative states. That 'planning' is done through the collusion of corporate R&D, and their 'handlers'.
I did mean to say and good because if the product did last forever the manufacturer would go out of business I got to learn how to type lol
There is always a negative and positive to any story,planned obsolescence is both good and bad.bad because consumers have to pay for product that should last forever.and bad because if the product did last forever, the manufacturer would go out of business therefore putting workers out of a job who need the money to feed and clothes their familys.so until everything is free we all have to suck it it up
Very much enjoyed watching this fascinating journey into the world of corporate profiteering and planned obsolescence. All of our worldly problems have been solved and suppressed in favor of the criminal bankers greed. Highly recommended watching.
goodday friend
This kind of thing,is not news,but it should be. Many companies deliberately lessen the life span and/or quality of products,out of pure greed. Everything from bug sprays,furniture,food,vitamins&of course light bulbs...you name it,now days,if something works too well,is too efficient,lasts a reasonably long time,it's taken off shelves&'dumbed down'. If they can get away with it,they'll do it. Sadly,the public(consumers),just bend over&take it. It's sickening. Corporate greed. Smh. I'm all for a decent price,but I believe if I'm going to spend my hard earned money on something,it should be of good quality,long-lasting quality. Ergo,I'd rather spend an extra few cents/dollars on better quality stuff,than waste my money,on cheap junk,so I speak with my wallet. These days,saving a dollar now,will often cost you more,later...just sayin'.
I'm curious if anyone who agrees with this documentary buys disposable diapers.
What is a better illustration of planned obsolescence than a single-use product?
The documentary claims that the Phoebus cartel "pressured" member companies, and fined them. How? Did they hire goons to beat them up?
If you are able to make a better lightbulb, then you have much to gain from undercutting the cartel and trying to gain marketshare for yourself.
A more general comment on the documentary is that it uses two different definitions of planned obsolescence. One is that the product is designed intentionally to fail earlier than necessary (who decides what is "necessary" btw?). The other is that the product is designed to be more desirable than previous products.
Using those two interchangeable made the narrative rather confusing at times.
Finally, I am quite suspicious of stories and arguments that do not acknowledge trade-offs. You could probably make an ipod with a longer battery life, but it would be bigger and more expensive. You could have a replaceable battery (like some competitors did), but it would not be as beautiful and solid.
If the East German lightbulbs (from 1981) or the communist fridges were so great in terms of trade-off, then you'd expect they would sell. The fact that nobody apparently wants them should tell you something.
So its you who raised hell when the US government tried to move toward the new longer life energy efficient light bulbs. Your gop congressmen took up your battle too. There is a conspiracy behind every locked door for some people. Just DIAF.
The Venus Projects "Resource Based Economy" is the solution to this BS(Bad Science)
I have an Apple laptop, an ipad, and an iphone. I bought them all second-hand in a recycle shop in China. I felt pretty good about it. Now I find that the ipad and iphone are horrible devices. Any software I add, Apple gets a chunk out of. But the computer is nice. When the ugly periph's die, I'm going to get a very simple phone and stick with a used laptop running Linux on it.
I've repaired lots of computers. I kept the original imac going for nearly 15 years until I just got too board with it. You'd be amazed at how easy it is to fix hardware. The hard part is getting the right part. There are a lot of people on the net out there that will help you though. Buy little, throw away even less. Give old things to kids who can't afford them. Be frugal and be generous.
New overpriced LEDs are great.Great energy savers. Last a life time. But the miniature florescent electronic bulbs do not last long . Electronic high voltage producing components are housed sealed tight.No means of heat escape. Caution in using them--fire hazard.
Do not have them without a enclosure fixture. Such bulb caught on fire over the bed and mattress started a major fire.No joke!
Stick with LEDs--great product.
I think Life on earth has really great potential, If just the people sitting in the power positions die away and the ones taking their places are more interested in the well being of humanity than their own egocentric selves. I can understand that the people on top back in the days had a pure ego-driven business plan, but now every one can afford what is more than enough luxury and you don't have to own the whole world to be of wealth.
I really think we should combine our resources, Because we are clearly good at pretty much everything. The problem is just that we repeatedly work so hard not to work together, which is a total shame, as we are all of the same kind living on the very same planet. And its a total shame that the greed for money is rapidly destroying the future for both human life on earth as well as the animals on earth (which I feel has ever more rights , as they do not do **** to **** this once really nice planet up)
It's time for the human race to prove that we are not just total i*iots that crashes the car into a mountain side 5 minutes after getting our drivers license... And by that I mean totally destroying the earth and the ambition it has to obtain life right after we gained some technological knowledge, which we really should use to make this place better than naturally intended...
The Livermore light bulb never failed also because it was never turned off and on, it is on a circuit that is always hot. Moving it to the new firehouse was a real feat. Great documentary.
Great Movie! Really hard to find though. I can't imagine there's a single American advertiser that wants this thing to hit the airwaves.
Ponder this. How do you think that the great arts were made before there were lightbulbs? Have you ever contemplated light refraction and amplification through mirrors? It is how all the masters painted, how the common lived and how we will all find ourselves. My kids loved it when I showed it to them. Everything Old is Made New Again
what is the link to the Russian software for printers in the video?
This is a great film. Definitely a top 5 for me. thanks for sharing.
apples message is disingenuous... plain and simple
Great film, I love the old lightbulbs all warm and yellow. I hope they don't completely phase them out.
I love this film, ever since I saw it I have a greater sense of nostalgia for admiring old technology. I'm thinking I should stock up on older bulbs, I love the warm yellow light they give off.