Apple faces further accusations over 4G iPad in UK
- — 02 May, 2012 17:17
Apple is facing accusations that its adverts for the new iPad's 4G capabilities in the UK are misleading. This follows similar accusations in Australia, where the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took Apple to the Court for violating the conditions of the Australian Consumer Law.
The BBC reports that the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has received 'dozens' of complaints about the new iPad's 4G capabilities, which are currently redundant in the UK, and isn't satisfied that Apple has complied with an agreement to amend claims about the tablet's 4G feature.
The ASA had already spoken to Apple about its misleading advertising, but is now further investigating the matter following continuing customer complaints about "potentially problematic claims" about the new iPad's 4G.
Apple said that it would make "no further reference to the 4G capabilities" of the new iPad on its UK website, and told the ASA that it had removed references to 4G from the webpage that the complaints were made about. Apple also told ASA that it had edited a video that contained references to 4G, says the BBC.
However, the UK Apple site still calls the mobile data network compatible iPad the Wi-Fi + 4G model, and only explains that 4G LTE is not available in the UK in a footnote at the bottom of the webpage.
In Australia, Apple offered refunds to anyone who thought they had been misled by the iPad's 4G capabilities, but the company then argued that it had never marketed the device as being compatible with Australia's networks.
It looks like 4G won't be arriving in the UK for some time, despite Everything Everywhere launching a campaign to promote the importance of bringing 4G to the UK as soon as possible.
