Professor of Rural Sociology and Science, Technology, and Society, Penn State Disclosure statementLeland Glenna does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Whether the product is an automobile, smartphone or seed, companies can extract more profits if they can force consumers to purchase the company’s replacement parts or use the company’s exclusive dealership to repair the product. consumers could save US$40 billion per year if they could repair electronics and appliances – about $330 per family