canon: Canon in legal trouble for disabling scanning feature in ‘all-in-one’ printers when ink is low – Times of India

When you purchase an ‘all-in-one’ printer you expect the scanning functionality to work even if the printer is running low on ink. However, Canon is accused of disabling the scanning feature in its ‘all-in-one’ printers when the device runs low or out of ink. A user named David Leacraft in New York has filed a class-action lawsuit against Canon as his ‘all-in-one’ printer– Canon Pixma MG2522– doesn’t allow scanning unless there’s enough ink in the cartridges.
Scanning documents requires no ink and the user claims that Canon is forcing its customers to buy replacement cartridges and that the company is misleading it’s customers by calling the device ‘all-in-one’.
The lawsuit seeks $5 million as compensation and over 100 class members have voiced against this move by Canon, a report by Bleeping Computer said.
As per the class action complaint, “Throughout its marketing and advertising, including on the product packaging for the All-in-One Printers, Canon claims the All-in-One Printers are multifunction, “all-in-one” devices that can print, copy, scan, and in some cases, fax documents. As opposed to the “single function” printers it sells, Canon calls these multifunction devices a “3-in-l” or “4-in-1” for the fact they purportedly provide three or four functions. In truth, the All-in-One Printers do not scan or fax documents when the devices have low or empty ink cartridges (the “Design Issue”), and Canon’s advertising claims are false, misleading, and reasonably likely to deceive the public.”
The complaint added that Canon does not represent or warn consumers that ink is a necessary component in order to scan or fax documents. Due to this, users are forced to buy new cartridges and “incur unexpected and unnecessary burden and expense”
“Canon knew, or should have known, that its representations and advertisements regarding the All-in-One Printers were false and misleading, and that they failed to disclose material information,” it said.
The complaint includes most all-in-one models under the Pixma series.