A competition regulator in France applied a fine against Apple for not warning users that it slows the performance of old iPhone models. Apple recognized in 2017 that it applies a software update that effectively slows iPhone.
A “deceptive business practice by omission.”
This is how a French regulator defined the practice of Manzana to deliberately slow down their older phones for which he imposed a fine millionaire.
The US firm was fined 25 million euros (about US $ 27 million) by the Directorate General for Competition, Consumption and Fraud Prevention of France (DGCCRF).
Apple acknowledged in 2017 that slowed down some models ancient of iPhone, although he assured that this was done in order to “prolong the life” of the devices.
But the DGCCRF determined that consumers they were not aware of that movement.
The California firm said in a statement that it reached an agreement on the sanction with that French government agency.
Why does Apple slow down old iPhone?
The fact that over time iPhone phones become slower led many of its users, for a few years, to suspect that Apple applied a slowdown to make people change it for a newer one.
Before the constant accusations, three years ago the company confirmed that there was a slower performance of some models as they got older but He refused to go to make customers buy a newer model.
The firm said the lithium-ion batteries in the devices became less able to meet peak energy demands as time went by.
That could cause an iPhone to turn off unexpectedly To protect your electronic components.
He then released a software update for the iPhone 6, iPhone 6s and iPhone SE that “softened” battery performance.
The practice was confirmed after a client shared the performance tests on Reddit, suggesting that his iPhone 6S had slowed down considerably as he got older.
But suddenly it accelerated again after the battery was replaced.
What did the regulator say?
The French DGCCRF said the iPhone owners “they were not informed that the installation of iOS updates (10.2.1 and 11.2) could slow down your devices. ”
As part of the agreement, Apple must display a notice on its website in French for a month.
Apple “committed the crime of deceptive business practice by default”And agreed to pay the fine, according to the French agency.
Does Apple keep doing it?
Yes, Apple continues to apply software updates They slow down some iPhone models.
Since Apple confirmed the practice in 2017, it has been implemented on several more iPhones, including:
- iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus
- iPhone SE
- iPhone 7 and 7 Plus
- iPhone 8 and 8 Plus with iOS 12.1 or higher
- iPhone X with iOS 12.1 or higher
- iPhone XS, XS Max and XR with iOS 13.1 or higher
The setting is only enabled when the battery begins to degrade and iOS now offers clearer information to consumers about when performance management has been activated.
“The effects of performance management on these newer models may be less noticeable due to their more advanced hardware and software design,” Apple said.
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