Man Versus Machine: iPhone 4S User Files Class Action Against Apple, Alleges Siri Won't Do As Told

Frank Fazio, a disgruntled iPhone 4S user from New York, recently filed a federal class action lawsuit against Apple in California, alleging that the Siri feature of the iPhone 4S does not work as advertised. For those of you who still use pay phones, Siri is a virtual assistant that uses voice recognition to answer questions and perform tasks that would otherwise require typing, such as making calls, sending text messages, scheduling meetings, and getting directions. Mr. Fazio alleges that he purchased an iPhone 4S in November 2011 based on representations made by Apple regarding the Siri feature but began noticing problems right away. When he asked Siri for directions, for example, "Siri either did not understand what [he] was asking or, after a very long wait time, responded with the wrong answer.

From Now On I Will Call You Lead Plaintiff. OK?

Apple has promoted the iPhone 4S in several television and web-based ads showing Siri performing useful functions for its users. In one such ad, a ubiquitous thirty-second spot entitled "Road Trip," a young couple on a cross-country road trip is shown using Siri to help navigate their journey, asking questions like: "What's the best way to Santa Cruz, California?" "Where's the best barbecue in Kansas City?" and "Is there a rodeo in Amarillo today?" In another commercial, "Rock God," Siri is depicted facilitating a rock-obsessed teenage boy's transformation from musical neophyte to lead guitarist in a garage band, responding along the way to verbal commands like "How do I play 'London Calling?'", "Tell Julie and Kate that our band is playing at the garage tonight", "Add Migraine Headaches to my list of band names," and, ultimately, "Call me Rock God." In each of the ads, Siri is depicted as "understanding" the user's speech and replying promptly with content that is on point – e.g., "From Now On I Will Call You Rock God. OK?"

False Advertising Allegations

According to Mr. Fazio, these ads and others like them are misleading and deceptive because they show Siri performing tasks with ease and without error. A user's real-world experience, he contends, is materially different from that depicted in the ads. In his own case, Siri often did not understand what Mr. Fazio was asking and took a long time to respond. Mr. Fazio alleges that his experience with Siri is not unique and that Apple was aware of Siri's alleged shortcomings when it began to market the iPhone 4S (as evidenced by Apple's description...