Apple Complies with iPad '4G' Marketing Ruling in Australia, Faces New Complaint in Norway - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple Complies with iPad '4G' Marketing Ruling in Australia, Faces New Complaint in Norway

by

Apple has updated its marketing for the new iPad in Australia after regulators in that country criticized the company over "misleading" marketing claims related to the iPad's 4G capabilities. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced on Tuesday that it would pursue injunctions, fines and other remedies.

Apple responded by offering full refunds to Australian customers who felt misled about Apple's 4G advertising.

ipadaustralia
Apple has seen similar complaints over the iPad's 4G marketing in other countries including Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Currently, the iPad only works on 4G LTE networks in the United States and Canada. The Norwegian complaint is more significant than those in the other countries. Like Australia, Norway has actually instructed Apple to change the wording of its marketing materials.

The Norwegian Forbrukerombudet, or Consumer Ombudsman, has expressed particular concern over the heavy focus on the new iPad's 4G LTE support and the description of the product as "designed with next-generation wireless technology".

Because the iPad's LTE support is incompatible with Norwegian wireless networks, the fact that the iPad supports LTE makes no difference to potential buyers in Norway and is thus "misleading". The Ombudsman has given Apple until April 10, 2012 to make the necessary changes.

Popular Stories

iCloud iPhone 17 Pro

iPhone Users Who Pay for iCloud Storage Get Two New Perks on iOS 27

Thursday July 2, 2026 6:10 am PDT by
If you pay for certain iCloud+ storage plans beyond the 5GB that Apple offers for free, you will receive two more perks on iOS 27 at no additional cost. A summary of the two new iCloud+ perks on iOS 27:Increased daily usage limits for some new Apple Intelligence features, including image generation in the revamped Image Playground app. HomeKit Secure Video cameras receive generated video...
Read Full Article • 51 comments
Apple Event Logo

Apple Just Released a New Product

Thursday July 2, 2026 8:04 am PDT by
Apple's first product release of summer 2026 occurred this week, but do not get too excited, as it is merely the Beats Solo Buds in a new color. Beats Solo Buds are now offered in orange through Best Buy in the U.S., with availability set to expand to 7-Eleven stores in Japan on July 4. Apple already offered orange Solo Buds in India for free with the purchase of an iPhone 15 or iPhone 15 ...
Read Full Article
iPhone 4 on Black Feature

Apple Facing One of Its Worst Leaks Since the iPhone 4

Thursday July 2, 2026 9:53 am PDT by
Apple supplier Tata Electronics recently suffered a cyberattack that resulted in thousands of confidential files being published on the dark web, and this reportedly included some photos and documents related to the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro. We have elected not to share any of the leaked photos in this story due to the illegal nature in which they were obtained, but they can easily be found...
Read Full Article

Top Rated Comments

jav6454 Avatar
jav6454
186 months ago
4G, a bag of hurt
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
striker33 Avatar
striker33
186 months ago
Good.

Apple have definitely gone about the 4G thing the wrong way. Completely misadvertising it outside NA.

If its 4G, then its supposed to be 4G capable. It does not accept what will be the frequency for 4G in the UK, therefore it is not capable of 4G here.

But nevertheless, I'm sure the Advertising Standards Agency will be all over it by now. Expect a rename in the coming months.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
T
TomP80
186 months ago
In response to all the "get over it" comments -

Just take a step back, and think about what the reaction would have be in the United States if Apple released the brand new LTE-compatible "iPad Wifi + 4G" on March 7, then when everyone started receiving their pre-ordered iPads on March 16, they realized that it was utterly incompatible with either Verizon or AT&T's 4G networks.

Then, imagine if the response was "well.... it works perfectly well on Australia's and Norway's 4G networks, so I don't know what you are complaining about - it was in the fine print".

Or maybe the response would be "well.... technically you can call pretty much anything 4G, so you should be satisfied with pre-LTE 3G technology, because the fine print says that I can call that 4G if I want to".

I'm guessing that there would be a very large number of unhappy American consumers in that scenario.

As I said in a previous post - I love my Apple products and admire them as a company, but this is a monumental marketing mistake and local regulators around the world have every right to stand up for consumers in their local jurisdiction if a company has engaged in misleading advertising.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
C
cube
186 months ago
"4G" does not exist.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Capt Underpants Avatar
Capt Underpants
186 months ago
That's how consumer protection should work.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
B
babyj
186 months ago
Apple has a 4G capable device. If you're in a 4G market, you get 4G on your capable device.

Except you won't ever get 4G on your 4G Apple capable device outside of North America. Which is what the problem is and the reason Apple are getting bitch slapped left, right and centre.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments