Sydney, Australia. The Australian government has declared war on Apple, after the corporation locked iphones serviced by non-Apple third party vendors. The government agency has launched a major court action upon the US based corporation.
The U.S. technology giant “bricked” – or disabled with a software update vast numbers of smartphones and tablet devices, then refused to unlock them on the grounds that customers had the devices serviced by non-Apple repairers, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a court filing.
An Apple spokeswoman did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment, indicating the Amercan corporation must first consult attorneys prior to communication of their response.
Australian officials however were not at a loss for words, “Consumer guarantee rights under the Australian Consumer Law exist independently of any manufacturer’s warranty and are not extinguished simply because a consumer has goods repaired by a third party,” ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said in a statement.
“Consumer guarantee rights under the Australian Consumer Law exist independently of any manufacturer’s warranty and are not extinguished simply because a consumer has goods repaired by a third party,” ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said in a statement.
Sims said that between September 2014 and February 2016, Apple customers who downloaded software updates then connected their devices to their computers received a message saying the device “could not be restored and the device had stopped functioning.”
Customers who asked Apple to fix their devices were told by the company that “no Apple entity … was required to, or would, provide a remedy” for free, the documents added Apple engaged in “misleading or deceptive conduct and made false or misleading representations to consumers” about its software updates and customers rights to have their products repaired by the company, the commission said.
As well as fines, the ACCC said it was seeking injunctions, declarations, compliance programme orders, corrective notices, and costs. The lawsuit was filed late on Wednesday.