The National Communications Commission yesterday said it would consider further measures after controversies surrounding Apple Inc’s recently launched iPhone 6S, following reports that devices sold in Taiwan and dozens of other nations had central processing units (CPU) with marked differences in performance.
The iPhone 6S CPUs were produced by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) and South Korea’s Samsung.
However, analyses of the smartphones have found that iPhone 6S models equipped with chips produced by TSMC show better results in tests of energy efficiency and heat dissipation compared with those powered by Samsung’s products.
Following a Legislative Yuan resolution on Monday, NCC Chairperson Howard Shyr (石世豪) said the commission would confer with the Ministry of Economic Affairs on a proposal to request that mobile phone manufacturers disclose the names of their CPU suppliers and suppliers of other key components, and offer a resolution of the issue within three months.
However, the proposal generated mixed reactions among mobile phone manufacturers.
New Taipei City-based HTC Corp said it would not disclose such information.
Samsung said it would follow the regulations and listen to the needs of its customers.
Apple was yet to respond to the proposal.
NCC spokesperson Yu Hsiao-cheng (虞孝成) said the commission could generate results in less than three months given the urgency of the situation.
However, Apple’s response to the dispute remains the key in solving the controversy, Yu said.
“There is yet to be an official report on the differences between CPUs produced by different suppliers. All we have right now are test results provided by netizens. We hope that Apple could quickly issue an official statement [on this issue] to consumers,” Yu said.
“In the meantime, we will maintain close contact with telecom service carriers, who have told us that they are waiting for a response from Apple. We believe the company would not ignore the concerns of the public and address them accordingly,” he said.
Yu said the NCC, as an overseer of telecommunications providers, cannot analyze or compare the cost and performance of every mobile phone sold, work that is usually done by the private sector.
All the NCC requests is that carriers disclose as much information to consumers as possible, particularly before people purchase devices, he said.
Should the mobile phone manufacturers refuse to disclose key information, Yu said the agency could only require telecom companies to reveal information that consumers have the right to know before purchasing a mobile phone, listing the information in standard service contracts.
When asked how much information about components mobile phone manufactures are obligated to disclose, Yu said the information should mainly be what consumers are concerned about.
The main pressure on manufactures to disclose information should come from consumers, he added.
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