Apple Sued In Brazil For ‘Planned Obsolescence’
Flickr/ Camillo Miller
Brazil’s Jornal do Comercio has reported that Apple will be facing a class-action lawsuit over the introduction of the iPad 4 outside of its yearly update cycle. The Institute of Politics and Law Software (IBDI) charges that this update is tantamount to “planned obsolescence” that hurts customers by releasing the fourth-generation iPad seven months after the release of the third.
“Consumers thought [they were] buying high-end equipment not knowing [it] was already an obsolete version,” said IBDI attorney Sergio Palomares, who is pursuing the lawsuit. The IBDI believes that the improvements in the iPad 4 could have easily been implemented in the iPad 3. The current iPad tablets are armed with an A6X processor as opposed to the A5X, an HD camera as opposed to a standard VGA front-facing setup, and a new “Lighting connector” instead of a normal 30-pin design. Consumers who purchased iPad 3s were able to make a return for the iPad 4 within 30 days of their purchase (though some retailers extended this offer on their own), but the IBDI asserts that Apple did not do enough in Brazil to inform customers of the upcoming upgrade model and the discontinuation of the iPad 3.
The suit is seeking free replacements for those who purchased the third-generation iPad, and a 50-percent reimbursement on the purchase price. On top of this, it’s also seeking that Apple be subject to fines equal to 30-percent of the value of each iPad 3 sold.
This comes right after Apple lost its trademark on the name iPhone in the country. Gradiente had already registered the name before Apple had a chance to, and currently produces a line of smartphones under the name iPhone Neo One that run Google’s Android operating system. Apple is still pursuing its options, contesting the ruling on the grounds that Gradiente didn’t use the name within the five-year window normally allotted under Brazilian law to retain it. Gradiente has expressed interest in selling the trademark, if Apple is willing to bite.
