Apple Accepts Penalty For Misleading Australian iPad 4G Owners

Apple has agreed to pay a A$2.25 million (£1.4m) fine for misleading customers over claims that its latest iPad was compatible with 4G networks in the country.

The matter was due to go to a full trial this week, but Apple has reached an out-of-court settlement with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), avoiding the maximum possible penalty of A$4.4 million (£2.8m).

However no court order will be made until it has received details of iPad sales and returns as well as details about Apple’s financial situation. The company has agreed to deliver this by 13 June and a final decision will be made after this date.

Out of court

The ACCC announced its intention to take Apple to court after it said that the ‘WiFi + 4G’ branding was false advertising. The new iPad only supports 4G networks on the 700MHz and 2.1GHz spectrums used by operators in the US and Canada – so it is incapable of 4G operation in Australia (and the UK, for that matter).

Apple offered a refund to Australian users, but refused to accept responsibility, stating that it never once said the new iPad supported Australian 4G. It has also since rebranded the ‘Wi-Fi + 4G’ version of the tablet as the ‘Wi-Fii + Cellular’ in territories outside North America.

The new iPad is incompatible with 4G networks in Australia, Germany, Sweden and Finland among others.

The branding was also used in the UK, where no commercial 4G service exists and the spectrum earmarked for LTE networks is also unsupported. The proposed Everything Everywhere 4G network on its existing spectrum would also not be suitable.  The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) also said that it was not happy with the branding, confirming to TechWeekEurope that it had received a number of complaints.

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