Previously we reported that an "XDA Developer" member was filing a class action lawsuit against T-Mobile and Samsung because he felt that they were holding out needed updates on their customers as a marketing ploy to increase profits. There is now more to the story, as it seems the drama has grown.
Another member of the XDA Developers forums, named 'The.Samsung.Secret', has come forward claiming to be a Samsung insider, and also claims that Samsung charges carriers for major updates. The.Samsung.Secret differentiates the updates by saying that critical bug fixes and regular scheduled maintenance updates are 'exempt' from this, but new OS updates, like going from Eclair to Froyo, are feature updates and incur a charge from Samsung. Samsung.Secret explains that this is why the Samsung Galaxy S line of phones has yet to receive Froyo, and not some marketing ploy to maximize profits for their new phones coming out. This is more of what he had to say,
This flies in the face of what we know so far, and places the blame on the carriers, and not Samsung. However, its important to look at all the facts in this 'soap opera'. The international line of Samsung Galaxy S phones have already received the 2.2 Froyo update, its only the US version that has not. This tends to point back to a marketing ploy again. Of course, Samsung has recently responded with a complete denial,
Is this a case of a company backpedaling, trying to cover their butts, or is the 'Samsung insider' a fraud? So far, very little info has come out from Samsung, and although the post from The.Samsung.Secret seems legit, there is no reason to assume it is. It could all be made up, or even just a misinterpretation of the facts. Regardless of whether the 'truth' is ever revealed regarding these matters, there are a lot of US Galaxy S owners anxiously waiting for their turn with Froyo. If you are one of those folks, let us know your thoughts in the forums.
Source: Gizmodo and PhoneArena