Nintendo Japan’s repair policy has undergone an important change that is successful for some, although for others it is a “dangerous weapon” as it can be used as a form of censorship. As we told you in the title of this news, this change means that the company you can refuse to repair the consoles customers who harassed their workers.

Creation a literal translation From Nintendo Japan’s new policy, we can read that the company clearly states:

“When inquiring about a repaired product, please refrain from any actions (including but not limited to those listed below) that go beyond what is socially acceptable as a means of fulfilling your request. If we believe that any of these actions have occurred, we may refuse to replace or repair the product. If the company believes that the conduct is harmful, it will contact the police, a lawyer, etc. and take appropriate action.

Actions that Nintendo Japan considers to be will cause the product to be refused repair are the following: intimidating or threatening, comments that are offensive or demeaning, invasive of privacy, excessive and unreasonable demands (such as asking for a free out-of-warranty repair), demanding an apology from Nintendo or its employees without reasonable cause, excessively repeating a request or complaint, and defamatory comments on social networks or websites.

Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan she did not hesitate to show her support for this measure by Nintendoand said that some companies have also begun to adopt this measure to combat harassment of their workers by their own clients, and that it is “effective”.

I personally don’t think it’s the right measure because things get mixed up that shouldn’t go in one bag. It’s one thing Nintendo has a responsibility to its products and to its customers as a company, and it should never be absolved of fulfill its repair and replacement obligations. Another, of course, is the legal action the company can take against its clients for this harassment, defamation and intimidation behavior.

Giving a company the power to decide whether to repair a product based on our behavior towards it is something we should not allow, not only because of what I have already said in the previous paragraph, but also because it may end Arbitrary decisions that create serious consumer vulnerability.