“An attempt by China Central Television (CCTV) to paint Apple and Volkswagen in a bad light through a celebrity-driven Sina Weibo campaign has backfired badly on the state-run media outlet after one of the celebrities posting an ‘Apple-bashing’ post accidentally included an instruction on when to post from the TV station alongside his prepared talking point,” Electronista reports.
“This prompted observant citizens to notice that a raft of celebrities had posted similar messages and posted around the same time, prompting ridicule from Weibo users,” Electronista reports. “Weibo could be considered the Facebook and Twitter of China, with nearly 400 million users. On March 15, a ‘Consumer Rights Day’ broadcast that included accusations that Apple was “biased against Chinese consumers in its warranty and customer service policies… Shortly afterwards, celebrities began posting similar “testimonials” amplifying the program’s claims along with the hashtag ‘#315onthemove,’ a reference to the TV show. The post often mentioned — incorrectly — that Apple products include a two-year warranty in the US but only a one-year warranty in China as part of the attack.
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