The Shanghai Consumer Rights Protection Commission formally announced on July 3, Friday, that it has taken legal action against mobile brands Samsung and Oppo for the companies' pre-installation of apps on their smartphones.
Tianjin Samsung Telecommunications Technology Co. Ltd. and Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Co. Ltd. received separate legal cases, said the Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate People's Court on Wednesday.
The court filed the public interest lawsuits after they conducted investigations on the complaints the public had about the pre-installed apps, according to commission Secretary General Tao Ailian.
The commission studied 20 smartphones, and discovered that several units were sold with apps already installed, leaving users stuck with apps they are not able to remove. It also claimed that cellular data are being "stolen" from some phones.
The commission said that the models involved were Samsung SM-N9008S, with 44 apps pre-installed, and the Oppo X9007 model, with 71.
Apps such as an online shopping program and an electronic dictionary were found on the Samsung model, while Oppo came with various games and other programs, the commission added.
The companies' failure to inform buyers of the applications' pre-installation is a clear infringement of the consumers' rights to know, it said.
"The litigation is our latest attempt to safeguard consumers' rights after other methods failed," Tao said, without further comments regarding other legal steps taken against the said companies.
"We hope it will force other companies in the sector to end the unreasonable, but common, practice of pre-installing apps without telling consumers. This is something that is very much necessary for the healthy development of the whole industry," added Tao.
The commission seeks a ruling that would make Samsung and Oppo legally required to include on their packaging the information that shows which apps have been previously installed on the packaging and clear instructions for uninstallation.
The structure of public interest litigation is designed to simplify the process of pursuing legal action against big businesses on behalf of individuals or groups of citizens, said local lawyer Jiang Xian.
"The cost to an individual of pursuing such a case would be prohibitive," he said.
This is the first time a Shanghai court has accepted these types of cases filed by the consumer rights commission.
Samsung and Oppo must enter a defense 15 days upon receipt of the cases, before the court announces the trial dates.