HP SHOCKER: Cancel Instant Ink and HP Now Says Customers Can Buy Third-Party Cartridges Instead!

In a stunning twist for a company long associated with firmware updates, Dynamic Security, and restrictions on non-HP supplies, HP is openly telling certain canceled Instant Ink customers they can continue printing with compatible third-party cartridges. HP’s own Instant Ink Terms of Service state that when a customer cancels, HP remotely disables the subscription cartridges—potentially leaving ink inside that can no longer be used—but owners of non-HP+ printers can replace them with either genuine HP cartridges or compatible third-party cartridges. (HP Instant Ink, Click here to see the original article) The irony is explosive: HP can electronically shut off the cartridges supplied through its subscription program, yet when customers are forced to replace them, HP officially acknowledges that compatible aftermarket cartridges are an option. For an industry where HP has repeatedly battled the third-party cartridge market, the policy creates a remarkable contradiction—HP disables the ink, but then says, “Go ahead, buy compatible cartridges.” The bottom line is the irony could not be clearer: HP can shut down the Instant Ink cartridges sitting in your printer, but once the subscription is canceled, HP itself says some customers can turn to compatible alternatives to get printing again. In other words, Cancel Instant Ink and HP Says Some Customers Can Buy Third-Party Cartridges Instead!