iPhone hit by misleading web claims

Apple has been rapped by advertising watchdogs for claiming its new iPhone could surf the whole internet.

The TV advert stated: "You never know which part of the internet you'll need… Which is why all the parts of the internet are on the iPhone"

However, the iPhone does not support either Flash or Java – both necessary to view many web pages – causing two people to complain.

Apple claimed what was meant by the advert was that the iPhone could access any standard webpages and not WAP versions of sites that other handsets only offer or a limited the range of sites.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled: "We concluded that the ad gave a misleading impression of the internet capabilities of the iPhone.

"We considered that, because the ad had not explained the limitations, viewers were likely to expect to be able to see all the content on a website normally accessible through a PC rather than just having the ability to reach the website."

As a result the advert was blocked and cannot be shown again.

The iPhone uses the Safari browser which is based on open source technology - – meaning any firm can use this technology without paying.

Both Flash and Java are not open source and require plug-ins to be downloaded on home computers.

Apple decided not to enable the iPhone with these technologies so sites using Java or Flash cannot be viewed on the browser.