The "serialization" practices of the American giant Apple are now the subject of an official investigation for deceptive marketing practices and planned obsolescence. This was indicated on Monday by the Paris prosecutor's office, after a complaint filed by the French association Stop planned obsolescence (HOP). Opened last December, the investigations into this complaint denouncing a defective repairability of apple devices were entrusted to the national investigation service of the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF), according to the prosecutor's office, which confirmed an announcement by the association.

In a statement, the latter said it hoped that this investigation would "sanction and demonstrate the criminal nature" of Apple's practices. The "serialization" practices of the American group consist in "associating the serial numbers of spare parts with that of a smartphone, in particular via microchips, giving the manufacturer the possibility to restrict repair for non-authorized repairers or to degrade a smartphone repaired with "generic parts" remotely," according to HOP.

Already an investigation for voluntary aging of old iPhones

"On the occasion of the arrival in Paris of Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, in a month, for the VivaTech event, HOP calls on the smartphone manufacturer to guarantee the right to repairability of its devices in a logic of sincere circular economy," writes the association. Apple France could not immediately be reached by AFP for comment.

In February 2020, Apple had agreed to pay in France a fine of 25 million euros as part of a criminal settlement, to end proceedings for deceptive marketing practices.

An investigation had been opened in 2018, after a previous complaint from HOP which denounced facts of premature and voluntary aging of old iPhones, the giant having acknowledged that it voluntarily curbed the performance of old models after a certain time, but with the aim according to him "to extend their lifespan".

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