Italy’s competition authority has fined Apple and Samsung 5 million euros ($5.7 million) each over claims of planned obsolescence. Apple was smacked with an additional 5 million euro fine for failing to provide customers with information about essential characteristics of the batteries in their phones and how to care for them.
Both companies will also be required to post a notice on their Italian portals informing visitors of the Authority's decision and link to the assessment order.
The
AGCM found Apple and Samsung guilty of “unfair commercial practices” in violation with local laws relating to the release of firmware updates for mobile devices that “caused serious malfunctions and significantly reduced performance, thereby accelerating the process of replacing them.”
Specifically, the AGCM said insistent requests were made by manufacturers for consumers to download and install updates on devices that were not able to adequately support them and provided no means of restoring original functionality.