According to FT (Financial Times), the UK’s ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) could place Apple under investigation over its new iPad’s 4G claims. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took Apple to court for the same issue, which forced the Cupertino firm to offer refunds to Australians who purchased the 4G version of the tablet.
Apparently, ASA received 24 complaints from customers who claim to be victims of false advertising. They find Apple’s new iPad 4G labeling misleading, since the UK still does not offer 4G LTE internet. FT’s anonymous source from one of the top network operators in the UK says, “It was an issue as marketing materials had references to Wi-Fi and 4G. We asked them to change it and pushed back relatively hard on the 4G stuff. They normally tell us what to say and when, which is fine as they know their business, but suddenly they talk about the network and it went all wrong. The 4G references are going.
Even if 4G networks were to push through in the UK, the iPad 2’s successor still would not be able to make use of the available 4G spectrum bands, since it’s the wrong kind.
Do you think Apple is misleading customers with the new iPad’s 4G claims? Give us your thoughts.
