Apple to Pay $113 Million In Settlement
Apple is set to pay $113 million in a lawsuit settlement, dubbed “batterygate,” which was initiated to protect customers in 34 states alleging the company broke consumer protection laws by downplaying iPhone battery issues in 2016. The settlement is in addition to fines of around a half billion dollars already paid out by Apple to consumers early this year as well as fines imposed in other parts of the world.
The allegations surround Apple’s updated versions of iOS causing devices older than the latest models to unexpectedly shut down or fail to hold a battery charge. The company issued a software update which they said would fix the issues, but complaints that the updates caused performance problems persisted.
Conspiracy theorists posed the functionality degradation was deliberate by Apple in order to encourage consumers to upgrade to a new iPhone. An attorney for the multi-state suit stated that is not the case and Apple was in fact aware of the defect as well as its failure to remedy the situation in a timely manner.
The settlement, which is not an admission of any wrongdoing, will be divided among the states named in the proceedings. On top of the large cash settlement, Apple was ordered to update its terms to provide accurate data on the health and battery life of its iPhone products.

Ann Sullivan is a contributing staff writer covering national and world news topics. She brings dedicated experience having written international and domestic news, blogs, and web content for over 20 years. She’s also a published poet and graphic designer with degrees in Business and Graphic Communications and has been a music distributor, music industry sponsorship sales director and band manager.