Apple has agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle litigation accusing it of quietly slowing down older iPhones to induce owners to buy replacement phones or batteries, reports Reuters.
The preliminary proposed class-action settlement was disclosed Friday night and requires approval by U.S. District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California.
It calls for Apple to pay consumers $25 per iPhone, which may be adjusted up or down depending on how many iPhones are eligible, with a minimum total payout of $310 million. Reuters says Apple denied wrongdoing and settled the nationwide case to avoid the burdens and costs of litigation.
The “Batterygate” lawsuit alleged that Apple’s actions violated Consumer Protection Act legislation. In December 2017 Apple published an apology letter to customers in regards to “Batterygate” for slowing down older phones to compensate for erratic battery performance.
The tech giant offered $29 replacement batteries for those with an iPhone 6 or later. Apple also added more battery health information to iOS to let users know when the battery begins to compromise performance.
