Ethical Issues at Apple Inc: Case Study Discussion and Responses

This discussion board post analyzes Apple's ethical dilemma concerning the company's decision to slow down iPhones with older batteries without clearly communicating this to customers. The initial post presents the situation where Apple hid the impact of battery life on phone performance, leading to customer dissatisfaction and decreased sales despite an apology and a battery replacement offer. Two peer responses critique the original post: one suggests using a more recent case and providing recommendations, while the other questions the student's understanding of the company's relationship to the ethical dilemma and suggests further research. Desklib provides access to similar case studies and discussions for students seeking study resources.

Running head: DISCUSSION AND RESPONSES
DISCUSSION AND RESPONSES
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1DISCUSSION AND RESPONSES
Name of the company: Apple Inc
Link: https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/28/apple-apologizes-for-not-being-clearer-about-
slowing-down-iphones-with-older-batteries/
Discussion:
In the given article, the situation faced by Apple has been given. Apple had not been
transparent enough and had hidden certain facts from the customers with respect to the
performance of the phones being affected by the life of the batteries. Many users had
complained about the performance of their phones (Bratton & Gold, 2017). The company had
earlier thought that they could bluff the consumers by stating that it was due to heavy usage
or other external factors. However, it later figured out that the customers were not satisfied by
the given response and then it disclosed that the reason why the phones were unable to
perform well was because the batteries were not up to the mark.
It later stated that it is ready to change the battery of the users for a low cost of 30$
(Cascio, 2018). However, despite availing the offer and receiving the apology of the
company, many customers felt as if they were cheated upon and the sales of the new Apple
phones have considerably decreased (Panzarino, 2018).
Hence, the primary ethical dilemma raised in the given scenario is the situation of
Apple whereby hiding the fact of the batteries would have been inconsiderate on the side of
the company but letting the customers know about it would have had an impact on their sales.
Response 1:
The given article is a good case of an ethical dilemma. The fellow colleague has
successfully described the background of the given case and has described the situation of the

2DISCUSSION AND RESPONSES
ethical dilemma. However, the student has referred to a case which is not new or fresh. The
case belongs to 2016 which is to years back. Although the content has been explained
adequately, the student could have chosen a business case belonging to 2017 thereby making
his/her point more relevant. The student could have also used some other examples to
describe the case. Or he could have provided certain recommendations as to what could have
been the move by the company. Briefly stating, the content is clear but a little bit of relevance
is required. According to a documentary, I had seen on YouTube with regard to this company,
the managers had spoken about the situation which can be incorporated in the discussion
Response 2:
Although the student has a clear understanding of the concept of an ethical dilemma
and how it is adopted in a company, the student has not been able to demonstrate a clear
understanding of the relationship to the company he has chosen. Basically, he has been
unable to relate the concept along with the practical knowledge. Therefore it is suggested that
the student goes through the company website and article once again in order to gain a better
grasp of what is required in the given case and what exactly is the task which has been given.
Moreover, the link of the given case study/ online article or the video clip has not been
provided. If the link had been provided, it would have been better to provide an accurate
suggestion to the student. The student may also choose another company with a stronger case
to understand the concept better.
References

3DISCUSSION AND RESPONSES
Bratton, J., & Gold, J. (2017). Human resource management: theory and practice. Palgrave.
Cascio, W. (2018). Managing human resources. McGraw-Hill Education.
Panzarino, M. (2018). Apple apologizes for not telling customers iPhones with older batteries
would slow over time. TechCrunch. Retrieved 2 March 2018, from
https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/28/apple-apologizes-for-not-being-clearer-about-
slowing-down-iphones-with-older-batteries/