Cape Town - Sony Mobile has successfully appealed a decision by the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) that has prohibited the firm from advertising its new smartphones as waterproof.
In October, the ASA ruled that Sony could not claim that the Xperia Z1 smartphone was waterproof after a consumer complaint.
A woman complained that Sony Mobile SA's "waterproof" advertisement was misleading. Her smartphone stopped working a day after using it in water, and her service provider refused to repair it, saying it was "water resistant", not "waterproof".
Sony, however, would not take the ruling lying down and appealed the decision with the Final Appeal Committee of the ASA.
The committee recognised a report by the Japanese Electrical Safety and Environmental Technology Laboratory which found that the smartphone confirmed to the Ingress Protection Code (IPC) IP55 and IP58.
Careful confidence
In the latest version of the Z range, Sony has improved on the waterproofing to be rated at IP65/68.
Ultimately, the committee on that basis upheld Sony's appeal, but the company continues to advise customers to ensure that the ports on the devices are securely closed before immersing the smartphones in water.
"Sony Mobile was confident in the claims made in our advertisements, and ensured that related information is fully visible in our marketing materials in South Africa," said Mark Fenzel, country manager for Sony Mobile Communications in South Africa.
Watch this video of a Sony Xperia taking a swim.
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