Apple To Pay $14.8m To iPhone Owners In Huge Settlement

Apple is set to pay a hefty fee of $14.8 million (£11.2 million) to a group of iCloud users.

The tech company has been accused of breaking the 'contract regarding the iCloud Service that Apple provides to its users'.

The accusation states Apple broke its Terms and Conditions by using third-party servers to store iCloud user's data - it should actually have stored that data on its own servers, in line with the contract they set out.

They deny any wrongdoing but have chosen to settle the case to avoid court.

It's potentially quids in for US residents who paid for iCloud during a specific time period, as they might also be in with a chance of receiving some of the payouts.

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According to reports, the settlement includes any US resident who paid for an iCloud subscription from 16 September 2015, to 31 January 2016.

Users who fall under this category should be notified soon, if the email address they used for their iCloud subscription is still active.

A website for the lawsuit states: "The Parties to the Lawsuit have settled for $14.8 million.

"If you received an email notification from the independent Settlement Administrator about the Lawsuit, that means that you may be a Class Member.

"If you are a Class Member, you have the option of electing to receive a Class Payment by ACH transfer or by check."

Individuals can choose to receive the payment through an ACH transfer or by cheque by 23 May this year. If neither option is chosen, the amount may be paid to the account that pays for iCloud.

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Alternatively, a cheque may be sent to the address associated with the iCloud account at the time.

Individuals hoping for a share of the millions should be warned that the size of the payment isn't expected to be large - it depends on the tier the iCloud user was subscribed to.

Those who subscribed to the 1TB tier will receive more than people who used the 50GB or 200GB tiers.

It must be noted that money from similar settlements can be shared between millions, and lawyers also take their cut.

Affected Apple users can also opt out of receiving the payment and sue Apple themselves.

The website explains: "If you decide to opt out of this Settlement, you will keep the right to sue Apple at your expense in a separate lawsuit related to the subject matter of the claims this Settlement resolves, but you give up the right to get a Class Payment from this Settlement."