Apple Considers Rebates for Some iPhone Battery Replacements

By Tripp Mickle and John D. McKinnon

Apple Inc., responding to U.S. Senate questions about its decision to slow performance on older iPhones, said it is considering rebates for battery replacements for some users affected by the issue.

In a letter to the Senate Commerce Committee made public Tuesday, Apple said it may offer the rebates to customers who replaced their iPhone batteries before it slashed replacement fees by $50 late last year to address rising customer complaints about a software feature that slowed the performance of older iPhones.

The letter, dated Feb. 2, is the latest indication that Apple continues to look for ways to improve its response to the iPhone slowdown after scrutiny from customers and regulators. The letter was sent in response to a questions sent to Apple last month by Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.), chairman of the Senate commerce committee, who asked Apple, among other things, if it would consider providing rebates.

Apple's letter also laid out the timeline for the software update last year that triggered customer complaints of slower iPhone performance. The company said it made the update in January to address spontaneous shutdowns of some iPhone 6s devices. After running diagnostics to determine if the change reduced those shutdowns, the company said it publicly acknowledged the change in February in notes regarding changes as part of that January update.

Write to Tripp Mickle at Tripp.Mickle@wsj.com and John D. McKinnon at john.mckinnon@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 06, 2018 13:30 ET (18:30 GMT)

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