Apple To Entrust iPhone Repairs To Third-Party Service Providers, Historic Moment

When it comes to the tech industry, Apple has gained the reputation of that kid on the block who doesn’t like sharing. This is about to change as the company is reportedly thinking about entrusting its iPhone repair services to third-party companies. In fact, customers will now have choices of over 400 service centers whenever they need a cracked screen fixed.

It’s worth noting that the new development does not just pertain to US customers either since the new service centers will be found in over 25 countries at the end of the year, Reuters reports. This is according to company executives, which revealed one of the authorized service providers that customers can turn it is Best Buy in Miami.

These locations will then be provided with something called a Horizon Machine, which is essential for repairs and which Apple has never even admitted to exist. In essence, these hundreds of repair service providers will be on a very short leash.

As the publication notes, screen and other repairs involving smartphones are actually a multi-billion-dollar industry. For the most part, Apple has enjoyed near exclusive rights to having its products repaired, which meant that all of this cash has been going to one place.

One of the biggest problems with this setup is the lack of competition, and therefore, good deals on repairs. There’s also the matter of customers having to wait a long time to get their gadgets back. As a result, state governments have started to step in with a campaign to force companies to loosen restrictions on where customers can have their phones repaired.

Despite how this move might appear to be Apple’s way of heading off the legislative process, executives deny that it had any role in the company’s decision, The Verge reports. According to Brian Naumann, Apple’s senior director of service operations, the iPhone maker was actually considering expansion of its repair services for a long time.