Washington, DC — Last Friday, the U.S. Copyright Office granted a partial exemption to U.S. copyright law that paves the way for the routinely broken McDonald’s ice cream machines to finally get fixed. The Taylor Company, which makes the machines, previously had the exclusive right to fix them. Now, third parties will also be able to repair McDonald’s ice cream machines and other retail food preparation equipment. Among the people calling for this exemption were Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan and Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter, who submitted a joint comment to the Copyright Office. Demand Progress Education Fund has been a longtime supporter of the FTC and Justice Department Antitrust Division’s work to crack down on corporate monopoly power. Demand Progress Education Fund and Revolving Door Project also recently launched Billionaires Against Khan to expose self-serving attacks from billionaires on Lina Khan.
The following is a statement from Emily Peterson-Cassin, Director of Corporate Power at Demand Progress Education Fund:
“The days of not getting your McFlurry because of a broken ice cream machine could come to an end thanks, in part, to FTC Chair Lina Khan and Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter. Broken McDonald’s ice cream machines are so common because one company had the exclusive right to repair them. This is a clear example of how corporate monopoly power makes our everyday lives worse and how the FTC and DOJ’s Antitrust Division work is making our lives tangibly better. When billionaires, Big Tech and Wall Street complain about Lina Khan and Jonathan Kanter, this is the kind of popular, commonsense effort they’re trying to stop.”