Apple has a planned obsolescence: French prosecutor

Paris, January 9: Under French law, it is a crime to intentionally shorten the lifespan of a product with the aim of making customers replace it. A French prosecutor has launched a preliminary investigation of U.S. tech giant Apple (AAPL.O) over alleged deception and planned obsolescence of its products following a complaint by a consumer organization.

In December, Apple admitted that older iPhone models were deliberately slowed down through software updates. But it insisted it was because the phones' battery performance diminished over time. The French investigation is being led by the economy ministry's consumer protection agency.

Under French law, companies risk fines of up to 5 percent of their annual sales for deliberately shortening the life of their products to spur demand to replace them.

Apple already faces lawsuits in the United States over accusations of defrauding iPhone users by slowing down devices without warning to compensate for poor battery performance.

Apple also said on Dec. 28 it was slashing prices for battery replacements and would change its software to show users whether their phone battery was good. The slowing down of older devices seems to have the deliberate aim of pushing Apple customers towards purchasing the new model.