The Ministry of Justice and Public Security determined the suspension of the sale of the iPhone 12 smartphone, from the American Apple, without a battery charger in the box.
The determination was published on Tuesday (06) in the DOU (Official Gazette), in a process opened by Senacon (National Consumer Bureau), linked to the Ministry of Justice, in December last year.
Apple was also subject to a fine of R$12.3 million, since, according to Senacon, it is a “deliberately discriminatory practice against consumers”. The agency also determined the revocation of the registration with Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency) of the brand’s smartphones from the iPhone12 model.
In May of this year, Senacon had already guided more than 900 Procons across the country to open administrative proceedings against Apple and Samsung, on account of the sale of cell phone devices without battery chargers.
Apple can appeal the decision. Sought, the company said it will not comment on the case.
The charges against the American are tying sales, selling an incomplete product or lacking essential functionality, refusing to sell a complete product by discriminating against the consumer and transferring responsibility to third parties.
In its defense, Apple alleged, according to Senacon, that the decision not to supply the chargers was out of environmental concern, to encourage sustainable consumption.
For the agency, however, the arguments are not enough, since the decision transfers the entire burden to the consumer. According to Senacon, the manufacturer could take other measures to reduce environmental impact, such as the use of USB-C type connector cables and chargers, adopted as a standard by the industry.
Even with the imposition of fines by the Procons of Santa Catarina, São Paulo (SP), Fortaleza (CE) and Caldas Novas (GO), and judicial convictions, Apple, until today, has not taken any measure to minimize the damage and maintained the sale of cell phones without chargers, according to Senacon.
The agency points out that other manufacturers were sued and that they have presented proposals to solve the problem.
The Ministry of Justice sent official letters to the bodies and entities that make up the National Consumer Protection System, to the Transparency, Governance, Inspection and Control and Consumer Protection Commission (CTFC) of the Federal Senate, to the Presidency of the National Association of the Public Ministry of Consumers and to the Federal Public Ministry, so that they become aware of the decision, supervise and adopt the measures they deem appropriate.
“If it persists in the infractions, Apple could be considered a repeat offender, with the application of new, even more serious punishments”, Senacon said in a statement.
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