Apple has settled a class action lawsuit over the ‘antennagate’ debacle that surfaced shortly after the launch of the iPhone 4 in 2010. Around 25 million customers in the U.S. will be entitled to $15 in cash or a free bumper case.
Shortly after the iPhone 4 launched in 2010, adopters were faced with antenna issues that saw the device drop its wireless connection when held in a certain position. The problem was labeled ‘antennagate’ and quickly became a huge issue for Apple, so much so that the company organized a press event to offer customers full refunds and free cases, and prove that it wasn’t only the iPhone that was affected by human touch.
It also released an iOS update that slightly modified the way in which wireless signal was displayed on the device.
Some were so unhappy with the issue that they sued Apple. CNET reports that the lawsuit was actually a consolidation of 18 other lawsuits that were brought into one:
The settlement comes from 18 separate lawsuits that were consolidated into one. All share the claim that Apple was “misrepresenting and concealing material information in the marketing, advertising, sale, and servicing of its iPhone 4–particularly as it relates to the quality of the mobile phone antenna and reception and related software.”
The settlement now has its own website, www.iPhone4Settlement.com, which will provide customers with the information required to make their claim when it goes live. Emails will also be sent to those who are eligible for the settlement.
Ira Rothken, co-lead counsel representing the class, told CNET that the settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable:
We believe that the Apple iPhone 4 settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable. We believe that it allows members of the class to choose, and they can get $15 of cash or a bumper, so we believe that type of choice is proportional to the circumstances.
While Apple claims that the settlement relates to a “small number of customers” who “didn’t take advantage of a free case from Apple” back in 2010, Rothken says the class is compromised of a whopping 25 million members.
