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In 1924, a secret agreement between the world\'s largest lightbulb manufacturers changed the way we light our homes forever. The Phoebus Cartel, including industry giants General Electric, Philips, and Osram, met in Geneva with a shocking agenda - deliberately reducing the lifespan of every lightbulb they produced. ![\"💡\"](\"https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v9/t3c/1/16/1f4a1.png\")
Before the cartel, lightbulbs lasted 2,500 hours. After their secret meeting, manufacturers worldwide were forced to cut that lifespan to just 1,000 hours. Any company whose bulbs lasted longer faced heavy fines. The cartel even created a special testing lab to ensure bulbs would burn out quickly enough.
The scheme worked perfectly for 15 years. The cartel controlled production quotas and used deceptive marketing, especially in regions like China, to maintain their grip on the global lighting market. They convinced the world their shorter-lasting bulbs were somehow superior products.
World War II finally brought an end to this illuminating conspiracy in 1940. By 1949, U.S. courts ruled against General Electric for their anti-competitive practices, shining a light on one of history\'s most successful attempts at planned obsolescence.
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