{"id":162700,"date":"2015-10-27T15:00:07","date_gmt":"2015-10-27T15:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=162700"},"modified":"2015-10-27T12:00:50","modified_gmt":"2015-10-27T12:00:50","slug":"apple-sued-over-wi-fi-assist-feature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=162700","title":{"rendered":"Apple sued over Wi-fi Assist feature"},"content":{"rendered":"

Apple is being sued for introducing a feature in its mobile operating system that uses mobile data when wi-fi coverage is weak.<\/p>\n

Wi-fi Assist first appeared in iOS9 and allows devices to automatically switch between wi-fi and mobile data.<\/p>\n

A class-action lawsuit filed in California alleged that some people had run up large mobile data bills as a result of the feature, which was enabled by default.<\/p>\n

Apple declined to comment.<\/p>\n

\n

\"A
Some smartphones prioritise a wi-fi connection, even if the signal is weak<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Wi-fi Assist is designed to give people a more seamless internet experience as they leave an area with wi-fi, or if the signal is weak.<\/p>\n

By default, most smartphones exclusively use a wi-fi connection to access the internet if one is available – helping keep people within their mobile data allowance.<\/p>\n

But prioritising wi-fi can result in periods of poor connectivity – for example when leaving home – while a smartphone judges whether the wi-fi is still available, before reverting to mobile data.<\/p>\n

Some Android handsets have a similar setting, such as Samsung’s Smart Network Switch, which is switched off by default.<\/p>\n

\n
\"A
Mobile operators can charge substantial fees if data allowances are exceeded<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n

According to tech blog AppleInsider, the complainants filing the lawsuit said Apple had not properly explained the potential consequences of Wi-Fi Assist.<\/p>\n

They alleged the “overall amount in controversy” exceeded $5m (\u00a33.25m), because so many people could be affected.<\/p>\n

Apple’s support website currently warns customers that they “might use more cellular data” if they leave the feature enabled.<\/p>\n

“For most users, this should only be a small percentage higher than previous usage,” the website says.<\/p>\n

\n
\"A
The number of people with “bill shock” could be low<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n

“Apple could have put a pop-up notice on the phone to explain what had changed,” said Daniel Gleeson, mobile analyst at IHS.<\/p>\n

“But you know as well as I do that nobody reads all those pop-ups when updating their device.<\/p>\n

“Most Apple customers will be in a premium tier with a big data bundle, so the number of customers receiving bill shock should be quite small. But it could be a bigger issue internationally where more people use pre-paid tariffs.”<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Apple is being sued for introducing a feature in its mobile operating system that uses mobile data when wi-fi coverage is weak. Wi-fi Assist first appeared in iOS9 and allows devices to automatically switch between wi-fi and mobile data. A class-action lawsuit filed in California alleged that some people had run up large mobile data […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":162702,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[18],"class_list":["post-162700","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-dr-akwasi-osei"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162700","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=162700"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162700\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/162702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=162700"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=162700"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=162700"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}