Apple sued in Europe over iPhones that wear out too quickly

Apple Inc. is going through lawsuits in a number of European international locations in search of about $217 million over deceptive claims in regards to the battery lifetime of older iPhones.

A bunch of 5 European shopper organizations filed class-action fits in Belgium and Spain and plans to sue in Italy and Portugal over the approaching weeks, Euroconsumers stated in an emailed assertion Wednesday. The lawsuits concern customers of assorted iPhone 6 units.

The lawsuits mirror U.S. circumstances over claims that the corporate misled shoppers about iPhone battery energy and software program updates that slowed the efficiency of the units. The Cupertino, Calif., firm final month agreed to pay $113 million to settle a case with a number of U.S. regulators. In the meantime, clients are in search of approval from a U.S. court docket for a class-action settlement that may very well be value as a lot as $500 million.

“Shoppers are more and more upset by merchandise sporting out too rapidly, the iPhone 6 fashions being a really concrete instance of that,” stated Els Bruggeman, head of coverage and enforcement at Euroconsumers. “Not solely does it trigger frustration and monetary hurt, from an environmental perspective additionally it is completely irresponsible.”

The group despatched a cease-and-desist letter to Apple in July, asking it to cease a follow that allegedly forces customers to put in updates that decelerate their telephones a lot that they change into out of date and a brand new mannequin is required.

Apple stated in a press release that it might by no means “do something to deliberately shorten the lifetime of any Apple product, or degrade the person expertise to drive buyer upgrades.”

The Monetary Instances beforehand reported on the European lawsuits.