Apple revises South Korea iPhone warranty, Foxconn Brazil 'ready' to produce iPads
Facing pressure from South Korean regulators over its iPhone warranty, Apple has agreed to revise its policy in the country to begin allowing customers to trade faulty devices for brand new ones. Also, a Brazilian government official has said that Apple manufacturer Foxconn is ready to produce iPads in country and should start shipping the tablets this December.
iPhone warranty
The South Korean Fair Trade Commission said in a statement Wednesday that consumers with defective iPhones within one month of purchase can now receive new handsets instead of refurbished ones, Bloomberg reports. Apple's service warranty states that customers can get refunds, new phones or free repairs. Under the revision, consumers can now choose between the options, according to the regulator.
Last October, lawmakers summoned Farrel Farhoudi, Apple's senior director for iPhone service, to talk about the company's policy after receiving consumer complaints about it. At the time, Farhoudi had asserted that the company's terms were in compliance with the country's rules.
The iPhone warranty isn't the only issue upsetting South Korean consumers. Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit from 27,000 Korean customers who are seeking $26 million in compensation for alleged privacy violations. In July, the company paid out $946 to the lawyer now organizing the class-action suit in an individual complaint regarding a location data controversy on the iPhone. The Korean Communications Commission also fined Apple $2,830 after the incident.
In June, Apple was forced to comply with a Taiwanese law that required a one week return policy for its App Store.
iPad production
Brazilian website UOL (via MacStories) reported on Tuesday that the country's Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Aloizio Mercadante, said that the first iPads produced by Foxconn in Brazil will reach the market in December.
"At first many doubted, but it will be the first time that the company will produce iPads outside Chinese territory. We are taking a big step for digital inclusion in the country," he said. Mercadante also revealed that the government will soon announce an investment in a large factory for games in the Manaus Free Zone.
"The games industry has increased revenue and employs five times more than the hardware, for example. It is a factory edge that opens a promising market for Brazil,'' he continued, without naming the specific company.
Locally manufactured iPads could bring the price down by as much as 40 percent. Steep import tariffs in Brazil sometimes result in more than double the original price of electronics goods.
In June, Mercadante said iPad production at the Foxconn plant would begin in September, a few months later than originally planned. The first iPads manufactured there had been slated to arrive at the end of November.
iPhone warranty
The South Korean Fair Trade Commission said in a statement Wednesday that consumers with defective iPhones within one month of purchase can now receive new handsets instead of refurbished ones, Bloomberg reports. Apple's service warranty states that customers can get refunds, new phones or free repairs. Under the revision, consumers can now choose between the options, according to the regulator.
Last October, lawmakers summoned Farrel Farhoudi, Apple's senior director for iPhone service, to talk about the company's policy after receiving consumer complaints about it. At the time, Farhoudi had asserted that the company's terms were in compliance with the country's rules.
The iPhone warranty isn't the only issue upsetting South Korean consumers. Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit from 27,000 Korean customers who are seeking $26 million in compensation for alleged privacy violations. In July, the company paid out $946 to the lawyer now organizing the class-action suit in an individual complaint regarding a location data controversy on the iPhone. The Korean Communications Commission also fined Apple $2,830 after the incident.
In June, Apple was forced to comply with a Taiwanese law that required a one week return policy for its App Store.
iPad production
Brazilian website UOL (via MacStories) reported on Tuesday that the country's Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Aloizio Mercadante, said that the first iPads produced by Foxconn in Brazil will reach the market in December.
"At first many doubted, but it will be the first time that the company will produce iPads outside Chinese territory. We are taking a big step for digital inclusion in the country," he said. Mercadante also revealed that the government will soon announce an investment in a large factory for games in the Manaus Free Zone.
"The games industry has increased revenue and employs five times more than the hardware, for example. It is a factory edge that opens a promising market for Brazil,'' he continued, without naming the specific company.
Locally manufactured iPads could bring the price down by as much as 40 percent. Steep import tariffs in Brazil sometimes result in more than double the original price of electronics goods.
In June, Mercadante said iPad production at the Foxconn plant would begin in September, a few months later than originally planned. The first iPads manufactured there had been slated to arrive at the end of November.
Comments
Hmm, they got that Brazilian factory up and running pretty quickly.
This is a big deal. There are a couple of hundred million people in Brazil alone. While much of the country isn't yet earning enough for an iPad, a fair amount do and Brazil is a growing country, economically, with one of the worlds biggest GNP's.
2) I wonder if the Chinese and Brazilian factories are linked on each side of the Earth via The Blessing.
At least not everything will have that disgusting "made in china" sticker anymore. Unfortunately it's still a damn commie chinese company.
Actually Foxconn is Taiwanese Taiwan is not a communist state. Read about it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_China
1) Wow! That was fast!
2) I wonder if the Chinese and Brazilian factories are linked on each side of the Earth via The Blessing.
It's only fast because the Press was late in hearing about it.
The South Korean Fair Trade Commission said in a statement Wednesday that consumers with defective iPhones within one month of purchase can now receive new handsets instead of refurbished ones,...
Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit from 27,000 Korean customers who are seeking $26 million in compensation for alleged privacy violations. In July, the company paid out $946 to the lawyer now organizing the class-action suit in an individual complaint regarding a location data controversy on the iPhone. The Korean Communications Commission also fined Apple $2,830 after the incident.
Samsung and the rest of those South Koreans better watch out. They are going to kill the golden goose with their greed.
If Apple can't do what it wants to do there, they might find Apple deciding that South Korea needs Apple a WHOLE lot more than Apple needs South Korea.
How would Sammy SK like it if Apple just picked up and left them high and dry? Think about that, Sam-boy.
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/1540...razil-push.htm
At least not everything will have that disgusting "made in china" sticker anymore. Unfortunately it's still a damn commie chinese company.
Samsung and the rest of those South Koreans better watch out. They are going to kill the golden goose with their greed.
If Apple can't do what it wants to do there, they might find Apple deciding that South Korea needs Apple a WHOLE lot more than Apple needs South Korea.
How would Sammy SK like it if Apple just picked up and left them high and dry? Think about that, Sam-boy.
<Apple> better watch out. They are going to kill the golden goose with their greed.
If <Samsung> can't do what it wants to do, they might find <Samsung> deciding that <Apple> needs <Samsung> a WHOLE lot more than <Samsung> needs <Apple>.
How would <Apple> like it if <Samsung> just picked up and left them high and dry? Think about that, <Apple-boy>.
The opposite is just as true ConradJoe. Apple can't build a single product without Samsung's expertise, innovation and components. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement.
As TBell implied, I don't think Korean consumers are wrong in expecting warranty issues to be handled better. Replacing new with new on a one-month old flawed iPhone isn't unreasonable, nor is a simple refund.
The opposite is just as true ConradJoe. Apple can't build a single product without Samsung's expertise, innovation and components. It's a mutually beneficial arrangement.
While I agree that it's a mutually beneficial arrangement, the rest of that is incorrect. Please name a single component of Apple's products that they can't get elsewhere. In a few cases, specs may vary slightly, but everything in the iPad and iPhone can be obtained from multiple sources.
But where is Samsung going to come up with $7 Billion in sales to replace what they lose if Apple were to go elsewhere?
While I agree that it's a mutually beneficial arrangement, the rest of that is incorrect. Please name a single component of Apple's products that they can't get elsewhere. In a few cases, specs may vary slightly, but everything in the iPad and iPhone can be obtained from multiple sources.
But where is Samsung going to come up with $7 Billion in sales to replace what they lose if Apple were to go elsewhere?
So you claim all of Samsung's components for Apple's products are readily available from multiple sources? Any link or evidence for that? I have one that claims there's little chance of Apple bypassing Samsung.
http://www.ubergizmo.com/2011/08/sam...phone-4-parts/
So you claim all of Samsung's components for Apple's products are readily available from multiple sources? Any link or evidence for that? I have one that claims there's little chance of Apple bypassing Samsung.
http://www.ubergizmo.com/2011/08/sam...phone-4-parts/
More importantly can anybody else produce it with the same quality, in the same quantity and at the same price that Samsung does?
Parts may be available elsewhere but I seriously doubt that Apple wouldn't suffer massive disruptions if their supplier relationship with Samsung ever actually deteriorated to a point of termination.
This is a big deal. There are a couple of hundred million people in Brazil alone. While much of the country isn't yet earning enough for an iPad, a fair amount do and Brazil is a growing country, economically, with one of the worlds biggest GNP's.
Actually more than half of the Brazilian population is already "middle class", not to mention its very rich elite...Brazil is the 4th biggest market in the world for cars, and would be EVEN bigger were it not for the very high taxes that plague the country.
And before some misinformed person starts saying something about Brazil being the next "China sweatshop", it's important to highlight that the country has one of the highest labor costs on Earth, as well as a very extensive safety net - this is why you don't see "Made in Brazil" stickers like you do for China, Bangladesh, Poland, Romania and other low-cost places.
The main objective of this initiative is not simply to create jobs: it's to foster the high-tech sector and give much easier access to tablets as the next big thing in technological inclusion policies - IMPORTED electronics are very expensive in Brazil, and with local production (even if many components are still imported), the final price can fall by at least 30% in there...a great achievement already. As for Apple/Foxconn, they secure a manufacturing spot in a safe, democratic and Western powerhouse, while tapping the gigantic local market big time.
http://hbr.org/2011/07/the-globe-the...ationId=484019
An excellent (and current) read from the Harvard Business Review, and definitely recommended.
Samsung and the rest of those South Koreans better watch out. They are going to kill the golden goose with their greed.
If Apple can't do what it wants to do there, they might find Apple deciding that South Korea needs Apple a WHOLE lot more than Apple needs South Korea.
How would Sammy SK like it if Apple just picked up and left them high and dry? Think about that, Sam-boy.
You are basically saying, what if competition just goes away?
Ha! Samsung would be very happy.
Hmm, they got that Brazilian factory up and running pretty quickly.
Well you know if Apple decided to build an American factory here in the states, Apple would still be at the social and environmental impact study phase, while awaiting on license this and permit that, while dealing with America's judicial system from being sued by the Obama Government on behalf of their Union supporters because the factory was to be built in a 'Right to Work' state!
Actually, that not a
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At least not everything will have that disgusting "made in china" sticker anymore. Unfortunately it's still a damn commie chinese company.
You stupid racist, shame on you. Most Apple products are still made in China.
China is becoming the largest market for Apple products and the US market is becoming less important.