Apple Settles iCloud Class Action Suit out of Court; Will Pay $14.8 Million to Subscribers

BY Chandraveer Mathur

Published 24 Mar 2022

iCloud pexels

Apple has recently settled a class action lawsuit out of court and agreed to pay $14.8 million to paying iCloud users in the US. However, only people using iCloud’s paid services anytime between September 16, 2015, and January 31, 2016, are eligible for a payout from the Cupertino giant.

The lawsuit in question alleged that Apple stored user data on servers it didn’t own, thereby breaching the service terms and conditions associated with iCloud. If you are one of the several thousand people who used iCloud’s paid services in the timeframe mentioned above, collecting your payout is relatively simple. If the email you used to sign up for iCloud storage at that time is still active, you should be notified automatically that you’re a class member. You also need to have a US mailing address associated with the iCloud account plan.

Just because Apple agreed to settle out of court and pay alleged victims doesn’t mean it accepts wrongdoing. The company with Tim Cook at the helm firmly denies any wrongdoing. Macworld reports that the company is settling out of court to avoid the hassle of a trial.

If you are still an iCloud user, Apple will credit the Class Payment to the mode of payment that pays for your current subscription. If you have since discontinued your use of iCloud or don’t have a US mailing address anymore, you will receive the Class Payment via a cheque delivered to your current mailing address.

That said, don’t expect a handsome settlement amount if you are a class member. Apple has agreed to pay $14.8 million, but after lawyers and legal fees are deducted, there are possibly millions of eligible claimants, so you may receive a small amount. A dedicated website for the lawsuit explains that settlement amounts will be proportional to the iCloud storage tier you paid for. So, if you paid for 1TB of iCloud storage between September 16, 2015, and January 31, 2016, you will receive a larger settlement amount than someone who paid for 500GB of storage.

All things considered, this is yet another case where the might of consumers forced Big Tech to bow and repent. Meanwhile, Apple is inching closer to a much larger 50 million euro fine in the Netherlands for not allowing dating app developers to use third-party payment systems to process in-app purchases.

[Via Macworld]