Apple's Tim Cook says 'I'm sorry' to Chinese customers

Whether Cook means he is "sorry" or not, this type of kowtowing is what is required in mainland China in situations like this. Otherwise the corporate harassment would continue until products are banned, stores closed, or unilateral changes are forced on Apple by a government agency.

A quick Skype poll of mainland friends (as opposed to expat friends) in China found that of those who had Apple products, none said they'd ever had a problem with Apple's repair policies inside China. The problems were more likely with customers returning fake or far too out-of-warranty repair issues.

Chatting on the weekend to the Director of Marketing for a major local electronics firm in China, he felt it was a politically inspired anti-foreigner campaign and was sure other foreign brands would be harassed for their perceived "arrogance" in the coming weeks and months.