After French antitrust probe, Nespresso cracks open its coffee machines to knockoff pods

PARIS – No more worries about the warrantee, the machine breaking or — worst of all — a botched cup of coffee.

France's Competition Authority says Nespresso has for the first time agreed to open up its machines to knockoff coffee pods, under pressure from anti-trust regulators. The authority found that Nespresso had tweaked its machines four times between 2007 and 2013 to make competitors' pods unusable.

Under the agreement, announced Thursday, the company will give competitors four months' warning about changes to the machines and hand over prototypes for testing.

Nespresso said it would share the information with manufacturers selling outside France as well.