Apple Store Staff Accused of Signing Customers Up for Trials They Did Not Want
Apple Store 被指替顾客按下「同意」
A YouTuber alleges staff used a “personalised shopping” QR to open subscription offers and pressed agree on customers' behalf. Apple has cancelled the 40% target.
A YouTube creator has alleged that staff at some US Apple Stores signed customers up for auto-renewing trial subscriptions without their meaningful consent — and that they were doing so under a sales target.
Louis Rossmann's account, reported this week, describes the mechanism. A customer is asked whether they would like to scan a QR code for a “personalised shopping experience”. If they agree, staff can see on a company device which Apple products they own, which services they subscribe to, and which offers apply to them.
The employee then shows the offers. The screen has two buttons, agree and decline. Pressing agree charges the customer's default payment method, provided it has not expired — with a free trial that turns into a paid subscription when it ends.
Until early last week, Apple reportedly required staff to hit a “services attachment rate”. In some stores the target was 40%, meaning that for every ten devices sold, at least four customers had to be signed up for one or more subscriptions.
Customers who spoke to the creator said the charge after the trial was not always explained. Some described the process being rushed, the trial being presented as a “gift”, and staff pressing agree on the customer's behalf.
Apple cancelled the metric last week, according to MacRumors, explaining that it makes less sense during the holiday season, when people buy devices as gifts. It also sent stores a memo reminding staff to respect customer privacy and obtain informed consent, naming trial subscriptions and the personalised shopping feature among the cases that matter.
中文翻译（全文）
一位 YouTube 创作者指控，美国部分 Apple Store 的员工在顾客并未真正知情同意的情况下，为其开通了会自动续费的试用订阅——而且是在一项销售指标的压力下这么做的。
Louis Rossmann 的说法本周被报道，其中描述了具体机制。顾客会被询问是否愿意扫描二维码以获得「个性化购物体验」。若同意，店员就能在公司设备上看到该顾客拥有哪些苹果产品、订阅了哪些服务、以及适用于他的优惠。
随后店员展示优惠。屏幕上只有两个按钮：同意与拒绝。按下同意，系统就会从顾客的默认付款方式扣款（前提是尚未过期）——这通常是一段免费试用，结束后自动转为付费订阅。
据报道，直到上周初，苹果仍要求员工完成「服务附加率」。部分门店的目标是 40%——即每卖出十台设备，至少要给四位顾客开通一项或多项订阅。
向该创作者反映的顾客称，试用期结束后会自动扣费这一点并不总被说明。有人描述流程被草草带过、试用被包装成「赠品」，还有店员直接替顾客点了同意。
据 MacRumors 报道，苹果上周取消了这项指标，解释是它在假日购物季参考意义较低——那段时间人们常买设备送人。公司还向门店发出内部备忘录，提醒员工尊重顾客隐私、取得知情同意，并特别提到试用订阅与个性化购物功能。
重点词汇
- allege/əˈledʒ/v.— to state something as true without yet proving it指控；声称The creator alleges staff did this under a target.
- auto-renew/ˌɔːtəʊ rɪˈnjuː/v.— to charge again automatically when a period ends自动续费The trial auto-renews.
- consent/kənˈsent/n.— permission given with full understanding同意The allegation concerns consent.
- attachment rate/əˈtætʃmənt reɪt/n.— the share of buyers who also take an add-on service附加率Stores had a services attachment target.
- metric/ˈmetrɪk/n.— a measure used to judge performance指标Apple cancelled the metric.
- informed/ɪnˈfɔːmd/adj.— based on full and clear information知情的Staff must obtain informed consent.
- convert/kənˈvɜːt/v.— to change from one state to another转为The trial converts to a paid plan.
- on behalf of/ɒn bɪˈhɑːf əv/phrase— acting for someone else代表；替……Staff pressed agree on the customer's behalf.
- memo/ˈmeməʊ/n.— a short internal message to staff内部备忘录It sent stores a memo.
- decline/dɪˈklaɪn/v.— to refuse an offer拒绝The screen offers agree and decline.
阅读测验
共 5 道题目
What is the allegation?
How do staff access a customer's subscription offers?
Pressing agree charges the customer's default payment method if it has not expired.
Which details does the article give? (Select all that apply)
Apple said the metric made less sense during the _____ season, when people buy devices as gifts.
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