14 DAY TRIAL // Apple still can’t leave behind the iPhone performance throttling scandal, despite the whole thing happened some three years ago.
Most recently, a consumer advocacy group in Europe wants iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, and 6s Plus owners to be paid €60 ($72) each by Apple due to the intentional slowdowns.
Apple reduced the performance of a series of iPhones with iOS updates in an attempt to prevent unexpected shutdowns caused by degraded batteries. Apple, however, didn’t make it clear enough that some iPhones were slower on purpose, and some customers were believed to have purchased new devices for improved performance.
Now Euroconsumers is seeking compensation for European customers impacted by this performance throttling, pointing to a similar case in the United States and which Apple eventually settled for $500 million.
“We’re being asked to be treated with the same fairness and respect as US consumers,” head of policy and enforcement at Euroconsumers, Els Bruggeman, told CNN Business.
Talks with Apple failed
Interestingly enough, the consumer watchdog says they are now moving the dispute to court because the direct negotiations with Apple failed.
Apple originally offered discounted battery replacements for devices impacted by its throttling system, and the company updated iOS with more information about the battery health of each iPhone.
“This performance management feature is specific to iPhone and does not apply to any other Apple products. Starting with iOS 12.1, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X include this feature; iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR include this feature starting with iOS 13.1. The effects of performance management on these newer models may be less noticeable due to their more advanced hardware and software design,” Apple says.
The company hasn’t publicly commented on this new legal trouble.