A statement from Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and Public Safety gives a boost to smartphones with USB-C connectors. This comes after the sale of iPhones was banned in that South American country for not coming with any type of charger. This situation seems to be in favor of the more standard cell phone connector. Although the people of Cupertino have taken this stance as part of environmental concerns, the Brazilian government understands that it should provide a solution to the users of its equipment.
Brazil fined Apple nearly $2.5 million for leading people to buy Lightning cables. The focus is on how this decision ties in with the tech world’s shift to USB-C as a universal standard charger. The U.S. company, according to Reuters, will appeal the Brazilian government’s decision. The fight is focused on environmental improvement on Apple’s side and consumer protection on the Brazilian side. Everything indicates, according to the Brazilian press release, that iPhone will adopt the universal chargers of Android phones in its devices.
USB-C connector in focus
Brazil joined other regions that have been trying to get Apple to adapt its devices to the same charging standard as the rest of the world’s smartphones. It was not long ago that the European Union parliament agreed on a proposal to require electronic devices, both small and medium-sized, to use USB-C ports. For the moment, the people of Cupertino have been avoiding an agreement that includes them in iPhones, as well as in other devices of the company.
Ming-Chi Kuo, an Apple analyst, had expressed earlier this year that the company would adopt this universal connector by 2023, in its smartphones. However, it later emerged that the Cupertino company has been testing these connectors for its iPhones for some time. The new iPhone 14 will not change anything in terms of connection, although everything seems to indicate that this would be the last model with Lightning.
Suspension and fine for Apple
The Brazilian government and its Consumer Defense Department seem to care little for the environmentalist stance of the North American manufacturer of technological devices. The whole drawback, which led to a $2.5 million fine, is the lack of charger in “the box” that Apple smartphones come in. The Brazilian government claimed that the U.S. technology giant was engaging in a “discriminatory practice”.
In the Official Gazette, the government authorities ordered “the immediate suspension of the supply of all iPhone smartphones”. In addition, the text stated that this situation is “independent of the model or generation, which are not accompanied by a battery charger”. The measure targeted the sales permits of the iPhone 12 and 13, which was accompanied by a fine of R$12.28 million, about US$2.45 million. Apple had been prosecuted since December in Brazil for “selling an incomplete product”, in addition to being accused of “discriminating against consumers” and transferring its responsibilities to third parties.
