TAIPEI, 1 JULY 2009 - Taiwan's Consumer Protection Commission has ordered Dell to make good on sales from an online pricing error and deliver 19-inch LCD monitors to local consumers for NT$500 (US$15.26).
The government agency said it received 471 complaints about the mix-up after Dell corrected the discount to reflect the NT$4,800 (US$146.46) price it should have given. Prior to the discount, the monitors cost NT$7,500 (US$228.84).
The pricing mistake was posted online June 25 at 11 p.m. and removed June 26 at 7 a.m. During that eight hour period, 26,000 people placed orders for nearly 140,000 displays.
The commission said Dell should sell each customer one monitor at the NT$500 price and then offer a descending discount on additional monitors ordered. Failure to comply with the order would be a violation of Taiwan's fair trade laws.
"If Dell fails to respond to this directive properly and concretely, then the [Taiwan government] will consider seeking legal alternatives," the statementsays.
In a statement, Dell apologized for any inconvenience caused by the pricing error and said it "will offer reasonable discounts to the orders received under the wrong price."
The company is still in discussions with Taiwanese authorities on a final settlement of the issue, the statement says.
