The fundamental problem here is the IP system; even open-source is just putting lipstick on a pig. The core problem is that if you pick any particular type of device, chances are that no company is building fully open-hardware devices; it's a systemic problem. What's worse is that this is a solved problem - patents originally solved this, except for some reason firmware have copyright protection despite being a functional design, and thus they are gifted the privilege of legal protection without the responsibility of publishing documentation.
What's more, firmware's copyright isn't tuned for the electronics industry - they get protection for 70+ years, when it's duration should be the minimum duration necessary to properly incentivize producing innovative firmware. That's a variable period so I don't expect it to be an easy problem, but frankly it's not even in the ballpark.
So hypothetically, we will be legally permitted to modify the firmware of today's routers in maybe 2090 - no source code though. In fact the source code might have been lost forever, because copyright was designed for books and hasn't been properly updated before being applied to software.
Patents tend to last 20 years, which IMO is a far more reasonable duration (if your 2004 router design still isn't profitable then sucks to be you, you had a very generous window) - IMO the firmware should require source code in escrow in order to gain copyright protection, and it's copyright duration shouldn't last longer than a patent would.
The fundamental problem here is the IP system; even open-source is just putting lipstick on a pig. The core problem is that if you pick any particular type of device, chances are that no company is building fully open-hardware devices; it's a systemic problem. What's worse is that this is a solved problem - patents originally solved this, except for some reason firmware have copyright protection despite being a functional design, and thus they are gifted the privilege of legal protection without the responsibility of publishing documentation.
What's more, firmware's copyright isn't tuned for the electronics industry - they get protection for 70+ years, when it's duration should be the minimum duration necessary to properly incentivize producing innovative firmware. That's a variable period so I don't expect it to be an easy problem, but frankly it's not even in the ballpark.
So hypothetically, we will be legally permitted to modify the firmware of today's routers in maybe 2090 - no source code though. In fact the source code might have been lost forever, because copyright was designed for books and hasn't been properly updated before being applied to software.
Patents tend to last 20 years, which IMO is a far more reasonable duration (if your 2004 router design still isn't profitable then sucks to be you, you had a very generous window) - IMO the firmware should require source code in escrow in order to gain copyright protection, and it's copyright duration shouldn't last longer than a patent would.
See also: the tragedy of the anti-commons.