Chinese press dig into Apple over response to warranty practices criticism
China's government-controlled press continued its barrage against Apple on Monday, with a report calling the company's recent response to criticism over allegedly biased warranty policies "empty and self-praising."
Apple's Chinese Apple Care webpage. | Source: Apple
The People's Daily newspaper ran a front-page story deriding Apple's usual tight-lipped public relations procedures, which denied Chinese journalists' calls for interviews regarding a recent hit piece aired by the state-run China Central Television, reports The Wall Street Journal.
The television broadcast, seen by some as a smear campaign against Apple, accused the company of being "biased against Chinese consumers in its warranty and consumer service policies" by fixing faulty products instead of issuing new devices as it does in other countries.
After the piece aired, a number of Chinese notables voiced their outrage on the popular Weibo microblogging service. However, the anti-Apple messages were possibly orchestrated as a post by local celebrity Peter Ho included what appeared to be instructions on when to put up his vitriolic message.
Apple issued a response to the CCTV spot on its Chinese website, saying that it operates under China's rules and regulations.
"Apple's Chinese warranty is more or less the same as in the U.S. and all over the world," the statement said.
China is seen as a huge growth opportunity for Apple, so much so that the country was broken out as its own business segment for the first time ever in the company's latest quarterly conference call. The Greater China region saw revenues up 67 percent year over year and is expected to outperform the U.S. as Apple's biggest market in the coming months.
Apple's Chinese Apple Care webpage. | Source: Apple
The People's Daily newspaper ran a front-page story deriding Apple's usual tight-lipped public relations procedures, which denied Chinese journalists' calls for interviews regarding a recent hit piece aired by the state-run China Central Television, reports The Wall Street Journal.
The television broadcast, seen by some as a smear campaign against Apple, accused the company of being "biased against Chinese consumers in its warranty and consumer service policies" by fixing faulty products instead of issuing new devices as it does in other countries.
After the piece aired, a number of Chinese notables voiced their outrage on the popular Weibo microblogging service. However, the anti-Apple messages were possibly orchestrated as a post by local celebrity Peter Ho included what appeared to be instructions on when to put up his vitriolic message.
Apple issued a response to the CCTV spot on its Chinese website, saying that it operates under China's rules and regulations.
"Apple's Chinese warranty is more or less the same as in the U.S. and all over the world," the statement said.
China is seen as a huge growth opportunity for Apple, so much so that the country was broken out as its own business segment for the first time ever in the company's latest quarterly conference call. The Greater China region saw revenues up 67 percent year over year and is expected to outperform the U.S. as Apple's biggest market in the coming months.
Comments
Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton
It's amazing when a totalitarian regime supposedly wears the mantle of "the People's" anything.
And funny that many gravitate toward it…
Quote:
Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton
It's amazing when a totalitarian regime supposedly wears the mantle of "the People's" anything.
I didn't know The Rock was from China.
Still miffed about Foxconn Brazil, I see.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton
It's amazing when a totalitarian regime supposedly wears the mantle of "the People's" anything.
It seems like a fairly typical and commonly used tactic. In many instances where people have evil intentions, they name their group or their cause to include words and phrases that mean the exact opposite of what they really are.
http://iphone.appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/18/chinas_state_media_attack_on_apple_appears_to_have_backfired.html
Yep, like the 'Patriot Act'..... and to be an equal opportunity offender..... The 'Affordable Care Act'! ;-)
Just another way to get bribes out of Apple to shut them up.
This isn't like the Western press where there's broad freedom to report whatever the media wishes, true or not. In China there is no press freedom so whatever the ultimate goal is it's clear to me that it's being orchestrated by Chinese officials with an end game in mind.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EricTheHalfBee
I didn't know The Rock was from China.
If any more actors are going to post fake messages online, they'd better know their roles or shut their mouths. If you can smellllllll... what Tim Cook is rocking!
And even if they are replaced its not like you are getting a shiny white box with new headphones etc. in fact many of those swapped phones are remanufactured which means they took the working parts out of previous swapped phones and frankensteined them into a new unit. Yum
Seems that the Apple stores are just slapping the old back on a replacement phone, saying it was repaired, and circumventing the law that requires them to reset the warranty on a replacement phone for another year.
I'm an Apple apologist as much as anyone, and can see the potential for serious abuse using the law.
Exactly! Two of the worst piece of legislation to come out of Washinton in decades. Sadly the Patriot Act is one of hose bipartisan boondoggles that has been used as a hammer against the people in the US with little good to come out of it fitting the enemy.
Sadly it seems to be lost on the government that you win wars by destroying the enemy, whipping them out, not by attacking your own people.
Where do you live?
In Apple's home country, no warranty from Apple or any other company gets a warranty reset on the replacement.
It's silly logic to expect a warranty reset, bc some people would purposely break their items to get a replacement and warranty reset.
I think this whole scandal is the Chinese government's attempt support domestic companies such as Lenovo, ZTE, etc....
The majority of mobile phones are made in China, but by foreign companies. The Chinese government wants the majority of mobile phones made in China AND by Chinese owned companies.
Also, the majority of countries with "Peoples'" or "Democratic" in their name are not places that I would want to live.