Between two and three million Quebecers could soon win $150 million against Apple in the “Batterygate” case. More than $510 million has already been awarded to Americans and Canadians in this case linked to an iPhone battery problem.
Those who, in September 2017, had one or the other of the variables of the iPhone 5, 6 or 7 will perhaps remember this. An operating system update then slowed down the functioning of these devices everywhere on the planet.
“I couldn’t even check my emails and photos, it was too slow. It’s quite radical in terms of programming obsolescence,” says Simon St-Onge, a former Apple customer, still surprised six years after it happened.
Online forums were full of testimonials. The leading hypothesis: The popular iOS 10.2.21 update hid the real problem, which was that the tech giant knew its batteries were aging too quickly.
Tim Cook recognized this. Summoned to Congress in Washington in early 2018, the Apple boss admitted that “the iPhone returns to normal by replacing a chemically aged battery with a new one”.
The multinational, which is worth 2.9 trillion dollars, has just settled for 500 million dollars in the United States to avoid a trial. This is one of the largest sums ever paid by a company for an IT problem.
The Gauls of Quebec
In Canada, a similar case was settled out of court this week – January 14 – for $14 million. It will be more complicated in Quebec, where a $150 million class action lawsuit is ready to go to trial.
Apple wanted to “cover up the issues of premature battery degradation” with a global update of “planned, covert and systemic nature,” Me Benoît Gamache writes in the lawsuit.
The lawyer is seeking $67 million for lost performance and $48 million for battery, to which he adds $10 in punitive damages per phone “given the extent of the fault and Apple’s ability to pay.”
The lawsuit estimates the number of iPhones affected by the problem in Quebec at 3.5 million. This number could be scientifically calculated by obtaining emails linked to the 2.4 million Apple IDs present in the area.
All affected Quebecers can hope for compensation, Gamache believes. After all, the multinational has already admitted its action in other parts of the world.
“Amazing and absurd”
“Apple told me the update would let me use my phone, but it became unusable. It’s absurd,” says Simon St-Onge, whose name appears at the top of the lawsuit as a plaintiff.
The law doctoral student, who represents all Quebecers in the case, hallucinates: “They get caught with their pants down and continue to lie to everyone.”
The iPhone 5s with version 10.2.21, which a judge will soon hear about, is also the latest. It has switched to Android since 2017.
What is “Batterygate”?
Amounts paid by Apple in cases involving the same battery problem
California: US$113 million
Arizona: 5 million US dollars
France: €25 million
Italy: €15 million
United States: $500 million
Canada: $14 million (except Quebec)
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2024-01-19 05:00:00
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