A US customer has allegedly been banned by Apple from purchasing anymore iPads. A medical student writing on his blog Protocol Snow, claims to have been buying the iPads for members of a gaming forum living outside the US.
“I was doing this as a favour, unlike hoarders who were unloading iPads on eBay to cash in on the $150+ markup,” notes the student. “Instead, my asking prices were very reasonable, just enough to cover all the tax, international express shipping, and PayPal fees with a little left over for unexpected costs.”
When requests came in from forum members, the student began buying iPads, never more than two per day from his local Apple Store. However a reservation via a second iTunes account – reservations are limited to one per iTunes account – saw the student being questioned by Apple staff.
“There is a limit to the number of iPads that customers can buy,” the student was then told. “I’m sorry sir, but you have reached your lifetime limit of iPad purchases and will not be allowed to buy any more.”
When asked to clarify the ban and if it applied to iPads only, his credit card or household, the Apple staff member reportedly told the student: “All I can say is that you have reached your lifetime limit,” and “You are not allowed to buy this iPad.” When the student asked about how many iPads purchases would result in an Apple ban, the staff member said: “That information is not available.”
The Apple customer returned home to find an email confirming his reservation had been cancelled. In a later blog comment the student sums up his experience with Apple.
I don’t think that I was wronged at all. I’m not even upset, nor do I think I was complaining. Just sharing a story that I thought was funny and ironic, but sometimes I forget this is the Internet and it’s serious time, all the time.”
“I’m glad Apple has a system in place to stop hoarders. I’ve wanted shiny new gadgets in the past that were in short supply. Apple could be more consistent in catching hoarders though.”
Apple’s iPad will finally be available internationally at the end of May, with the company announcing details on Monday 10 May.