Rumor on Chinese social networks has it that users will not be able to get their Apple products repaired in Apple Stores if they were not bought directly from an Apple Store, or bought on Apple China’s official website.
Chinese tech blog ifanr on Thursday made contact with three Apple Stores: in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Beijing, and asked about the situation.
The Guangzhou Apple Store told ifanr that only products bought in Apple Stores and on Apple China’s official website can be repaired in Apple’s official “Genius Bar” repair areas in the company’s stores in China, as of Wednesday. They also said that that products from other channels can only be repaired at other repair sites authorized by Apple, including from Chinese e-commerce platforms and other offline channels.
The Apple Stores in Shenzhen and Beijing confirmed this to ifanr—only that it has not yet been announced to the public.
However, according to a post on Weibo by Ruiji, a Weibo-authenticated net personality, it is only that Apple Stores in Mainland China will request an Apple proof of purchase for service in some specific scenarios, which does not necessarily mean that an unofficial-channel product cannot be repaired in a Genius Bar.
Although Apple China has not made official announcements on this matter, consumers might hesitate before they order an Apple device on major e-commerce platforms like Tmall and JD.com, especially during the 2016 Double 11 shopping festival.
