Company foisting refurb iPhones on customers?

A senior iPhone director at Apple, Farrel Farhoudi, has been summoned to appear in front of the South Korean parliament on October 21st, says Bloomberg. Farhoudi will be asked to explain the company's repair and replacement policies, which have engendered a number of complaints from Korean customers. When people go to get iPhones repaired, the complaints allege, Apple is primarily choosing to hand out refurbished phones, rather than grant refunds, new phones or actual repairs. A local iPhone warranty allows a choice of any of the four options if a fault happens within 14 days of purchase.

Multinational executives appearing in front of the Korean parliament is a rare phenomenon; it's believed to be at least three years since the last such case. Farhoudi was only requested after an Apple spokesman, Steve Park, was unable to provide enough information. Na Seok Gyoon, an executive from Korean carrier KT, is also being called to testify. Either person could potentially be sued if they fail to appear.

A local news agency, Yonhap, claims to have learned that Apple has agreed to let Farhoudi speak. "It's just a one-time gesture," comments LIG Investment & Securities analyst Kim Young Joon. "There’s no reason to believe that the company will provide Korea with better services as there are bigger markets elsewhere and any change locally could trigger same requests from other countries."

by MacNN Staff