According to Tecnoblog, hundreds of iPhones in different retail stores in Brasilia have been seized in an action called “Operation Download”. The regulator aims to force Apple to comply with local law that requires smartphones to ship with the charger included in the box.
Despite the seizure, the brand indicated that it continues to sell phones and, until a resolution on this issue is decided in court, it will continue to sell iPhones.
According to Tecnoblog, the phones were seized at Apple authorized carrier and reseller stores. The regulator has ordered a ban on any iPhone model that lacks the charger included in the box.
Judge Diego Câmara Alves was the one who allowed the company to continue selling iPhones in Brazil until a final ruling in September, considering that the company is not exercising any abuse and the Brazilian regulator is exaggerating its functions. In addition, the regulator had already issued a fine for 12.2 million reais (about 2.7 million dollars), for damages to consumers, something that Câmara Alves has also considered exaggerated.
A million dollar savings for Apple?
A 64 GB iPhone 12 costs 17,999 pesos and the box only includes the lightning to USB-C cable. But the power adapter to be able to connect the cable and charge the device has a cost of 549 pesos.
Not including these adapters in its new iPhones saved Apple approximately $27 per device, reflecting a total savings of $6.5 billion. Despite this, its new Apple TV + equipment that is marketed in the Latin American country does have such an adapter, which suggests that the brand anticipated a possible fine.
