As expected, the European Union (EU) is now mandating that all gadget manufacturers will be required to support USB Type-C ports for recharging smartphone, tablet and camera batteries from 2024. This has global implications.

The ruling will eliminate wire uncertainty. USB-C is the mobile standard. This is good news for consumers, mixed news for green campaigners, bad news for Apple and partners who will have to wave goodbye to their proprietary Lightning port.

We analyze the deeper challenges and future timings for Apple's iPhone Lightning ecosystem worldwide in this published report for clients here.