The European Parliament (EP) votes favour for the mandatory introduction of common chargers for all mobile devices, with MEPs massively approving the resolution by 582 votes to 40, with 37 abstentions.
The EP now demands the European Commission (EC), the body in charge of drafting EU legislation, to adopt the delegated act foreseen in the 2014 Radio Equipment Directive by July 2020 or, if necessary, table a legislative measure by the same date. The Radio Equipment Directive calls for the development of a common charger, but efforts to "encourage" the industry to develop such a device fell short of co-legislator objectives. However some progress has been made since then, with the number of charging solution types dropping from over 30 in 2009 to just 3 in 2020.
As the parliament puts it, the EU must also regularly update the legal framework covering common chargers in order to account for technical progress, all while ensuring the interoperability of different chargers, both wired and wireless. In addition, the EU should consider initiatives to collect and recycle more cables and chargers, and ensure consumers do not need to buy new chargers with each new device.
That said, not everyone in the industry agrees with the proposal-- earlier in January 2020 Apple stated "regulation that forces conformity across the type of connector built into all smartphones stifles innovation rather than encouraging it." Of course Apple, as a maker of proprietary Lightning cables, has the most to lose if a common charger legislation comes into effect, and so far the EU appears to have little sympathy for the fact.
Go EP Wants Binding Rules on Common Chargers to be Tabled by Summer