AppleInsider reports that Apple has informed tech staff that major changes to the AppleCare and AppleCare+ are on their way, and will be enacted starting in the fall. The announcement allegedly took place in a town hall session on Thursday. The company reportedly aims to cut costs while making the service more attractive to customers.
The town hall session was led by Apple Vice President Tara Bunch, who revealed a set of after sales policy shifts would soon be rolling out across the U.S., and eventually the world, with many of the changes referred to under the “One Apple” brand, said a person familiar with the matter. While Bunch was referred to as Vice President of AppleCare, AppleInsider cannot confirm this assertion. On her LinkedIn page, Bunch lists her current job as simply “Vice President at Apple,” but it is known that she was previously vice president of Global Customer Support Operations at Hewlett-Packard prior to joining Apple in 2012.
Apple reportedly expects to save $1 billion a year by replacing parts on defective iPhones, instead of replacing the entire device, as it does currently.
Apple stores are reported to have the tools to replace speakers, receivers, home buttons, the vibrator motor and battery. Beginning in June, that will be expanded to include display replacement, and by July cameras, sleep/wake buttons and logic boards will be added to the in-store repair capabilities list. AppleInsider reports that in addition, employees will have access to advanced diagnostics tools that can remotely assess hardware issues and relay the data directly to technicians, allowing for quicker turnaround times.
The site also reports that Apple will be changing the way its AppleCare service works. Currently, AppleCare is attached to individual devices. The customer is required to purchase a new AppleCare plan for each iOS device or Mac computer they purchase. The new plan will be a subscription-based service, which will be attached to a customer, not an individual device.
AppleInsider says the new subscription service could include “exclusive” 24/7 support, but notes the final feature set of the plan is not finalized, and could still change. The new AppleCare could also extend the current complimentary free phone support that is included for 90 days with every product sold. The new version could extend that support to one year or more, and the company is reportedly considering other live support options such as chat via iMessage.
No information on pricing is as yet available.
