Regulation of Technology Companies' User Guidelines (Research Paper Sample)

Regulation of Technology Companies’ User Guidelines
John Mwaura
AuthorsGlobal.com
Regulation of Technology Companies’ User Guidelines
Introduction
Modern lifestyle has become complicated and necessitated the need for people to use complex approaches to improve their standards of living. The high population increase rate, high demand for food and shelter and the risk of environmental degradation have increased competition among companies and individuals (Shears, 2016). It is believed that in the best few decades the world’s population would surpass its ability to offer proper basic needs. Today, modern technology has become a necessity in the world since people are looking for cheaper yet effective ways of improving their standards of living. Technology based companies have been established in various spots across the globe to offer their products and services to the public within a short time. However, there are numerous challenges associated with modern technology which make it a risky venture. Sometimes, the regulations set to control the production, use and disposal of modern technology products have led to catastrophic impacts on the society and consumers. This paper explains why companies should regulate technology companies’ user guidelines.
Definition
A technology company is any business investment that is established to produce gadgets or machines to help reduce workload, simplify processes and reduce the time taken for people to do various activities. The most common technology companies include mobile phone, car, electronics, electrical appliances and medical equipment manufacturing companies. User guidelines are documents, handouts or any information that is produced by a company and accompanies its products to offer guidance on how a products or system should be used. The guidelines offer directions and answers to simple questions that users may experience when using a products. Most of these user guidelines are usually commonly referred to as manuals. A regulation is a set of rules that explain the operational paths of an issue, including detailing what should be done and what should be avoided.
Reasons why governments should regulate technology companies’ user guidelines
The role of the government in consumer protection it to ensure that the public is not exposed to dangerous or harmful products. These products may be substandard, unhealthy or produced using technology that affects the health of the public or environment. The government has to step in and monitor the technology used to produce such products and the impacts they have on the public and environment (Inderst, & Ottaviani, 2013). The following are some of the reason why governments should regulate technology companies’ user guidelines.
Marketing of technology products is usually done in ways that distort the truth to influence and persuade people to buy a products or service. Technology based companies usually invest heavily in marketing their products and this means that they expect to get high returns should the extensive marketing strategy yield the expected results (Casey, 2013). The process of advertising usually has an impact on the perception and attitude of the public towards a products or service. People are usually in need of cheap and effective technologies that will offer them the best services. The user guidelines of most of the technology companies usually create impressions that are very easy to use their products and systems. Therefore, people buy such products expecting that they will not have problems using them and enjoying the expected benefits. The present laws regulating the marketing and advertising that were established by the Federal Trade Commission to ensure that consumers are protected and that the companies are honest and transparent about their products (Wright, 2012). The technology-based companies are expected to produce user manuals and guidelines that comply with the truth-in-advertising laws and any entity that violates this regulation could face lawsuits. The user guidelines are usually intended to offer accurate and non-misleading guidance on how a products or system should be used. In addition, the guideline is expected to be backed up by claims made in advertisements at any time and also offer a level ground for consumers to understand and apply the directions as they are contained in the guidelines (Shears, 2016). A user guideline should not just contain the notes and instructions of using products but also the instructions should be applicable, useful to consumers and have no risks. This means that the companies should comply with the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1966 that requires all products to contain as much information as possible for the public to know what to expect. Governments should regulate the user guidelines of technology based companies to ensure they do not mislead the public through false directions and incomplete guidance.
Safety and Health are also key aspects that companies consider when presenting their products to the public. Consumers do not only evaluate the effectiveness and affordability of products but also its safety in terms of the risks associated with its use and end results. Most technology based products have related risks that are not usually described ion most user guidelines (Inderst, & Ottaviani, 2013). The risks associated with various technology based products include radiations, shocks, environmental pollution and injuries. For instance, a home theatre music system use manual may contain information about how the user may regulate the volume of the machine to a preferred limit. However, the same manual does not indicate the risks associated with playing very loud music for a long time and how this can affect the user, especially children. The companies usually assume that some of the risk hazards associated with their products are common knowledge and that consumers should have prior information on how to manage them. The risks associated with such user negligence or preferences are a responsibility of both eh user and the product manufacturer. It is necessary to explain that the Safety and Health Act of 1970 provides that such technology based manufacturing companies should provide a safe and sanitary user environment consumers by ensuring that their products are frequently inspected and tested for quality and safety improvement (Casey, 2013). It is the responsibility of the companies to ensure their products provide a user friendly and safe environment to avoid physical harm or even death through offering a user guideline that explains how to use products. The government has a responsibility of ensuring that even those products that are produced under the safest and legal procedures do not become risky due to the complexities of the products and how to use them. It is easy to produce safe and easy to use products but the risks associated with their use are becoming a worrying trend in the modern society. For instance, the problem of addiction is not usually stated in most user manuals yet it is one of the major problems making modern technology ineffective in a accomplishing their roles. Spending too much time playing computer games may not only affect the eyesight of the individual but also the fingers that are usually firmly stuck on the game pads (Shears, 2016). This means that user manuals should not assume that users will take predation of the risks associated with their products. Instead, they should assume that users know nothing about such risks and thus offer them the required guidance. The government should step in and ensure that all user guidelines do not ignore these simple yet serious risks that may affect the comfort, safety and health of the users by ensuring the companies produce detailed user guidelines.
Thirdly, technology in general has serious impacts on children whether it is used properly or not. It is necessary to explain that technology use among children is associated with transient changes in arousal and long term changes in the behavior of users (Wright, 2012). The long-term and short-term impacts of technology use among children have not been documented by any of the companies that produce such products as mobile phones and computers. Lack of this information means that the transient changes expected in children who are addicted to modern technology are likely to be observed among the modern young generation. For instance the “Mozart Effect” has been believed to improve the Intelligent Quotient of some children by a significant percentage. The ability of modern technology devices like mobile phones and computer games to manipulate the moods and arousal experiences of children has been observed to create a lasting impact on the growth and development and personality of these children (Inderst, & Ottaviani, 2013). The absence of information stating the impacts of technological devices on the mood, arousal and general growth and development of children who frequently use them means that an important psychological aspect of growth has been neglected. It is necessary to explain that while these technological products are produced to offer alternative part-time activities and keep children busy they nonetheless have created a bigger disaster in waiting that nobody seems to pay attention to it (Casey, 2013). The roles of the state ion regulating the production and use of modern technological devices are not only limited to physical or environmental health but also on the need to raise healthy generations. The government should ensure that any product intended to be used for entertainment or other purposes by children should also provide a positive development path and not plunge the users into unpredictable psychological bliss.<...