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Apple Being Sued Over Phone-Switching iMessage Issue

Wow, lawsuit...um sure.

The only way I would agree with a lawsuit here is if Apple has known about the issue and has done nothing to fix it. It is not User Error and the lawsuit only seeks to force Apple to fix it and not just some money grab.

Waste of courts time otherwise. If the person is not looking for anything, but for Apple to fix it, I will pat him on the back and say "thanks for looking out".

But the best solution is to never switch to Android. haha
 
keterboy said:
Only in the US you could actually win a retarded case like this.
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Why is it retarded? Your phone number gets stuck with texting issues forever, that's definitely a loss of use. Why should the consumer have to pay for Apples poor technology?
 
spazzcat said:
You would just get a text message then....
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Actually, not true. If you're phone is off, out of range, or on wifi only, you will not receive a text message.

If you're on wifi or connected to an open internet connection, you WILL receive an iMessage.
 
let me get this straight

…Users use iMessage (an Apple service that only works between iOS devices) and then are confused when they are no longer in the loop on their Android phone. That seems to be what the article says. Did they not understand that iMessage is a proprietary Apple platform for messaging?
 
bacaramac said:
Wow, lawsuit...um sure.

The only way I would agree with a lawsuit here is if Apple has known about the issue and has done nothing to fix it. It is not User Error and the lawsuit only seeks to force Apple to fix it and not just some money grab.

Waste of courts time otherwise. If the person is not looking for anything, but for Apple to fix it, I will pat him on the back and say "thanks for looking out".

But the best solution is to never switch to Android. haha
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Either way the consumer wins right? This is a good thing
 
kagharaht said:
iMessage which is Apple specific and provided for iOS devices. You switched to Android so thats your loss. Ridiculous lawsuit.
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No, you're misunderstanding-you stop receiving all text messages from iPhones to your new phone. Not iMessages. Regular, plain old SMS gets hijacked. THAT is the problem.
 
aalu91 said:
Someone explain to me how this is a stupid lawsuit. This is one of the few lawsuits I actually support.

I have encountered this issue numerous times and it is beyond ridiculous. There are many people who are AFRAID of switching to another non-ios device due to this issue, and in effect, apple has locked these customers into their iOS.

Sign me up for this lawsuit
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Drop the lawsuit and have the DOJ do an investigation! Im sure there are anticompetitive laws being broken. Apple is preventing the normal use of other devices plain and simple. If this was a new issue I would not think much of it, but its been know since 2011!!
 
spinedoc77 said:
Why is it retarded? Your phone number gets stuck with texting issues forever, that's definitely a loss of use. Why should the consumer have to pay for Apples poor technology?
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Agreed, this is actually a big deal. I switch devices fairly commonly and haven't ran into the issue but if I did I would be in rage mode. If there was any solution that was guaranteed to work this would indeed not be a big deal. Apple needs to fix this for their customers. Hopefully enough bad press will get Apple to throw more bodies at the issue at hand. I'm sure they are working on it but if there is public outcry it will become a higher priority inevitably.
 
JoshDoug said:
A fix for this could be an iMessage web app in the cloud which gives you the option to change settings/turn of iMessage for a number etc even if (like seems to be the problem for many people) they've sold their device or switched without properly switching iMessage off, because they will still have an apple id.

Turning of iMessage has always worked for me, nobody has ever had trouble reaching me/had messages disappear into the ether, am I the majority or the minority here?
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You are 100% spot on with your solution! :D :D

I wouldn't be surprised if :apple: implements this. An extremely simple web app is even easier than developing mobile OS dependent apps. Although, it would be entertaining if Apple developed an android app that delivered iMessages and then charged $.10 per message read. :)

I also have known many people who went android (which they then complain about) and I have never had any issues with sending to them, after I tell them how to remove their number from iMessage.
 
irj said:
…Users use iMessage (an Apple service that only works between iOS devices) and then are confused when they are no longer in the loop on their Android phone. That seems to be what the article says. Did they not understand that iMessage is a proprietary Apple platform for messaging?
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You don't get it. Users who had an iPhone who switch to a non iOS device end up not being able to receive any messages from those with iPhones. Many times, the messages from iPhone users display as sent but you do not receive their messages. You are then stuck in a position where you can send iPhone users messages but cannot receive messages back.
 
iPhone die hard fans: so delusional they think they actually work for Apple and that Apple actually values their loyalty.

If Android phones didn't allow iPhone adopters to receive messages from their Google contacts, there'd be a 100+ page long thread about how they should sue Google and how this is why iPhones and Apple are superior to Google Android.

But when the shoe is on the other foot, it's everyone else's fault for not using an iPhone.
 
fkick said:
I’ve helped multiple users switch or disable imessage… it’s not that difficult. You just need to disable it on your phone, and make sure you don’t have your phone number assocaited with any ipads or macs. If people imessage your email address..those will go to your mac/ipad if associated, but if people send to your phone it should start working within a few minutes.
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That's the key point - most people probably do not realize or remember that their mobile number is tied to any other iOS or Mac device they may own and share the same Apple ID on iCloud. So this would contribute to the problem for phone switchers who have multiple Apple products tied to their iCloud account. I'm guessing that if a single device user properly deactivates their iPhone before switching, this would not be a problem. But who really thinks about this stuff when getting a new phone, iPhone or otherwise?
 
I've had this issue lots as I tend to change phones quite often.

It has nothing to do with android phones as such and can happen if you switch to any non iMessage compatible device wether that's the latest android or a 90's Nokia.

I've always got round it by signing out of iMessage on all devices associated with the phone number (Macs, iPads, iPhones) and leaving it disabled for a couple of hours.

Normally after this getting the wife to send another message will then mean it defaults to text message rather than iMessage.
 
When I worked at Apple I just told those ignorant people to tell their friends to stop trying to send an iMessage to a non Apple device. Too many boneheads out there are using their Apple ID. Switch to sending to a phone number after starting a new conversation and it worked every time. This is a non-issue and there's no way these people will win this case.
 
I switched from AOL Messenger to Yahoo Messenger. Those weasels at AOL didn't automatically forward messages sent to my name at AOL to my new messenger or email address...

Perhaps I should sue them too...

You know, because they deliberately swallowed up my messages...

:rolleyes:

I've helped 3 people switch over to non-iOS devices, warning them of this issue and going through the steps to turn off iMessage and whatnot. All three reported no trouble whatsoever months after the big switch. Only 2 of my friends have reported this behavior, but they too were shocked and had no idea what iMessage even was, clearly not being proactive and doing research before hopping out of the ecosystem.

But who cares, it will go to class action because everyone loves free money, it's fun to sue Apple, Apple will settle and implement another level of idiot proofing, then pay out $3.75 to those "poor affected souls".

edit, just to add a prediction...
6 months from now, once Apple has incorporated a "fix" for this "serious" issue, we'll start seeing complaints of iMessages no longer showing up on Macs and iPads following a switch to a different phone.

Just switched to Galaxy S5, now APPLE won't gimme my iMessages any more on my IPAD! WTF APPLE, why you so stupid!
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I'd seriously consider tossing some money into a betting pool for this.

ppenn said:
When I worked at Apple I just told those ignorant people to tell their friends to stop trying to send an iMessage to a non Apple device. Too many boneheads out there are using their Apple ID. Switch to sending to a phone number after starting a new conversation and it worked every time. This is a non-issue and there's no way these people will win this case.
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Oh no, I'd almost guarantee they'll win. They definitely shouldn't, but they will.
 
This is a stupid lawsuit because there is a fix for this. Albeit not a well advertised fix. I have helped several people fix this and I don't even work for Apple so you can do this from outside the company. You just have to log into https://supportprofile.apple.com/ and disassociate the registered devices and eliminate the phone number in question from the account. Really not that hard. I do believe Apple should make this information readily available to those having this issue BUT there is a solution and this doesn't warrant a lawsuit. Too much hand holding needed these days.
 
irj said:
…Users use iMessage (an Apple service that only works between iOS devices) and then are confused when they are no longer in the loop on their Android phone. That seems to be what the article says. Did they not understand that iMessage is a proprietary Apple platform for messaging?
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Is this serious?
 
question fear said:
No, you're misunderstanding-you stop receiving all text messages from iPhones to your new phone. Not iMessages. Regular, plain old SMS gets hijacked. THAT is the problem.
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Why is it a problem? They are no longer an Apple customers with an iOS device using iMessage. Pretty clear cut to me.
 
Here we go again. Sue, sue, sue. We're all responsible for our own actions - ditching an iPhone that was using a proprietary messaging system and moving to a completely different phone without taking steps to ensure a smooth transition is irresponsible and expecting Apple to wipe their backsides so they don't have to figure it out themselves is expecting too much. Changing devices from one manufacturer to another is going to get more involved as they become more powerful and fight it out with even more proprietary features - get informed, get involved and try to run two systems side by side for a while until you're happy all is well. I suppose Apple are paying the price for letting the general public loose with technology....:)
 
Cuban Missles said:
I dont have this issue as I have been a loyal fan since the begining. However, my experience is that when I send a message with imessage it will try to send it and if it cannot it tells me that it was sent a regular text message (SMS). So why does it not do that here? When it clearly realizes in the vast servers at Apple that a message is not delivered why does it not switch to SMS as it does for me? What am I missing here?
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iPhone seems to precache those with iMessage enabled in your phonebook, so the issue really is say you texted me when I had an iPhone, then I switched and no longer have an iPhone, you text me again, your iPhone will send as iMessage, it will keep it on Apple's servers for days, even weeks, thinking that my iPhone is out of service and will be turned back on soon.
 
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