alt Hacker NewsIt's an interesting theory. However, Samsung has already started to roll out One UI 9, which is built on top of Android 17 a month ago, so their clock has already started ticking.
I'm not familiar with the concrete wording of the regulation, but I would wager that the all the customization layers (like "One UI") that OEMs put on top of AOSP is the component for which the update clock should tick, and they should be unaffected of an underlying open source component (AOSP) being released.
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TeMPOraL • today at 12:45 PM
Android 17 is old news, and OneUI 9 was what delayed the OS version bump for months, because Samsung planned to launch it with on new flagships first, during summer Unboxed event.
A problem with legislation in general is that it is often very open to interpretation. Especially legislation around fast-moving technology fields. It’s very difficult to write both broadly applicable legislation that requires minimal interpretation. And in fact leaving the regulation open to interpretation can be a feature from the point of view of authority.
The only interpretation that matters is that of the Authority of enforcement and judgement. The implementer’s interpretation doesn’t hold much weight.
We can say what we earnestly believe the regulations mean, and how they can be met, but if the authorities say “not good enough” that’s all that matters.