SANTIAGO: Apple has agreed to pay Chilean consumers $3.4 million in a lawsuit over programmed obsolescence of iPhones, their lawyer said Wednesday, the first such settlement in Latin America.

Apple is accused of having programmed a limited lifespan into some products to force users to replace their phones sooner than necessary, and has previously settled similar cases in the United States and Europe.

In Chile, some 150,000 users of the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus and SE sued the US company, claiming their smartphones started underperforming after software updates programmed by Apple before December 21, 2017. The agreement provides for a registration period for affected clients, who will have to provide proof of their devices’ reduced performance, a lawyer for the Odecu consumer body, Juan Sebastian Reyes, told a virtual press conference.