A lawsuit is being brought against the giant corporation, Apple Inc, for allegedly disabling FaceTime video conferencing apps on their older model iPhones. Some suggest Apple are doing this to force customers to upgrade to more expensive and newer models.
Apple attempted to get the lawsuit dismissed, but reportedly failed.
A Judge in the case ruled that customers who own the iPhone 4 and 4S models can join a class action for Apple’s alleged behaviour. Users claim that Apple has no right to discontinue a feature purely on older generation models.
The case
The lawsuit claims that Apple found a cheaper supplier of the video interfacing feature (which is routed via a third party) for their iOS7 operating system. Rather than paying for the same service for their iOS6 operating systems, it’s believed that Apple may have simply disabled the feature for models that use iOS6 or older systems.
Grounds for compensation
The lawsuit is brought on the grounds that the product is no longer of the same value without the FaceTime feature, which may violate consumer protection laws. Apple argued there was no loss as the service was ‘free of charge’ when it was available; however, this has been rejected by a District Judge who noted that
“FaceTime is a ‘feature’ of the iPhone and thus a component of the iPhone’s cost… indeed, Apple advertising FaceTime as ‘one more thing that makes an iPhone an iPhone’.”
It seems like a good point. When someone buys an iPhone that boasts multiple features that define the very product as an iPhone, surely they can expect it to have those features in working order.
Consumer protection laws
Here in the U.K., consumers are protected by various laws to ensure consumers have a right to expect products to conform to the terms it was advertised and sold under. Consumers usually purchase goods and services relying on the representations provided, and the manufacturer cannot simply change or remove features that make the product what it is.
Consumers paid for the iPhone with FaceTime installed, and you can argue they should expect that as part of the cost, and that the video interfacing feature should always remain available to them.
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