Following up on reports from consumers and, in fact, ourselves, that Apple was falsely advertising the latest iPad as having 4G capabilities outside of the US and Canada, the Australian federal court has found the firm guilty of "deliberately" misleading customers on the local capabilities of the iPad.
"The conduct concerned was deliberate and very serious, it exposed a significant proportion of Australian consumers of tablet devices to a misleading representation." stated Justice Mordy Bromberg, who had, in relation, issued a £1.5 million fine and a further fee of £194,000 in costs to Apple.
This doesn't come at the best time for the firm, who has just lost a case to Samsung over a 3G patent in the Netherlands. Damages against Apple devices in the region are yet to be discussed, however any patent cases involving 3G have landmark significance, as the technology is widespread and present in almost all of Apple's products, something that the firm wouldn't wish to lose any footing over.
We can only hope that as Apple realises that it's not all win win win, in the patent world, that the firm will re-evaluate its stance on IP and find a more amicable solution to the mess it has played a large part in creating.
