Phone unlocking to become legal in the United States again

[Scorpus]

Back in 2012, the United States Copyright Office effectively outlawed the unlocking of cellphones, making it very difficult for someone to use their phone on a carrier other than the one it was purchased for.

A new bill that's set to be signed into law by president Barack Obama will change this, making cellphone unlocking legal in the country. Known as the "Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act", the bill has already passed through both Congress and the Senate.

The passing of the bill follows many months of activism from groups who believe consumers should have the right to unlock devices they've legally purchased. While having an unlocked handset is necessary for switching providers without purchasing a new device, it's especially helpful for travelers, who might want to use a local SIM over often-expensive global roaming options.

Obama said in a statement that "the bill Congress passed today is another step toward giving ordinary Americans more flexibility and choice, so that they can find a cell phone carrier that meets their needs and their budget". 

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/57543-phone-unlocking-to-become-legal-in-the-united-states-again.html

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

the bill has already passed through both Congress and the Senate.

At last... something we can all agree on.

So what's this mean exactly? Will new phones be sold by carriers as unlocked, or will we be easily able to unlock phones ourselves? My understanding was that phones were tied to a network because of the technology inside them... SIM card or otherwise etc.

 

[Jad Chaar]

Hey Scorpus, on the front page, all it says is "Carri" under the title: http://goo.gl/vAAvd0

 

[Scorpus]

Hey Scorpus, on the front page, all it says is "Carri" under the title: http://goo.gl/vAAvd0

Thanks for spotting that, not sure how it happened, but I fixed it

 

[captaincranky]

Thanks for spotting that, not sure how it happened, but I fixed it

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, (not really), but now it says just, "carri" on the forum page....

 

[JeffDotNet]

I wonder how the carriers will react, back to locked in contracts?

 

[sapo joe]

No worries people, you can always come to Brazil and buy unlocked devices from us... LOL

 

[yRaz]

No worries people, you can always come to Brazil and buy unlocked devices from us... LOL

aside from getting robbed in the process

 

[misor]

Why do these telecoms offer phones that are locked in the first place?
they should consider selling phones that are open-line. they should also reward loyal customers who renew their phone/data contracts with huge discounts on next phone/gadget purchases. hiding behind the veil of 'network-subsidized' cheaper but locked phones is not a good reason.

 

[wastedkill]

Tell me again why something you buy that is permanently yours you have to ask to unlock it? its like asking someone permission so you can eat the orange you bought...

 

[tomkaten]

It was a stupid law to begin with and it speaks volumes about the US government's "dedication" to its citizens.

I've yet to see a carrier selling subsidized phones with prepaid cards, so it's a bit of a logical fallacy IMO. As long as you've got me contractually tied to your network for one of two years anyway, what's the need for such extra layers of "protection" ?

Granted, I might be missing the big picture here, so if anyone has extra info, I'd love to hear it.

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Tell me again why something you buy that is permanently yours you have to ask to unlock it? its like asking someone permission so you can eat the orange you bought...

Want an analogy that really exists? In many states it's legal to sell fireworks and buy fireworks, but it's illegal to shoot off fireworks.

If you think about it though, locking a phone to a network sorta makes sense because of the way phones are often paid for. It's been normal (until recently) to have your carrier pay for most, or all, of your phone if you signed a 2 year contract. If the carrier is paying for it, you have to deal with their rules and restrictions. It's the same way with many other things.... like if you want the govt to pay for something, they'll tack on a whole bunch of restrictions too.

 

[LinkedKube]

Good. I'm in S Korea right now. Just got a LG G3 which can be unlocked once I get home.

 

[wastedkill]

Want an analogy that really exists? In many states it's legal to sell fireworks and buy fireworks, but it's illegal to shoot off fireworks.

If you think about it though, locking a phone to a network sorta makes sense because of the way phones are often paid for. It's been normal (until recently) to have your carrier pay for most, or all, of your phone if you signed a 2 year contract. If the carrier is paying for it, you have to deal with their rules and restrictions. It's the same way with many other things.... like if you want the govt to pay for something, they'll tack on a whole bunch of restrictions too.

Your first house is mortgaged when you pay that off your saying you shouldn't have the right to modify the house?

 

[Dukenukemx]

I wonder how the carriers will react, back to locked in contracts?

There's more than one way to skin a cat. Currently you have four phone companies that work on different technology in the US.

AT&T - GSM 850 / 1900MHz
T-Mobile - GSM 1700 / 2100
Verizon - CDMA
Sprint - CDMA

All other phone companies in the US work with those networks. A lot of phones are usually restricted from within the phones radio rom to prevent being used on other networks. For example the motorola photon q is considered a great qwerty phone but it's only meant to work on CDMA. But guess what, you can get it working on GSM if you solder off a chip and install your own SIM card slot. Unfortunately the phone will not work in T-Mobile US due to difference in frequency. Even with this mod it'll only work in Europe or AT&T in US. Not all CDMA phones are SIM card slots, and if they do they prevent certain networks from being used.

Samsung for example is pretty good on allowing their phones to work on all networks. The Skyrocket is a AT&T phone that won't work with T-Mobile frequencies until you flash a radio rom, and then it will. People are pretty sure the Photon Q could probably work if you had a radio rom to flash, but there doesn't seem to be one that exists that works on T-Mobile.

Believe me phone companies don't need to lock people out of their phones. They can just make them useless on other networks. Even taking a Verizon phone to Sprint is a roll of dice, even though they're both CDMA.

 

[Frank Barnett]

I wonder how the carriers will react, back to locked in contracts?

There's more than one way to skin a cat. Currently you have four phone companies that work on different technology in the US.

AT&T - GSM 850 / 1900MHz
T-Mobile - GSM 1700 / 2100
Verizon - CDMA
Sprint - CDMA

All other phone companies in the US work with those networks. A lot of phones are usually restricted from within the phones radio rom to prevent being used on other networks. For example the motorola photon q is considered a great qwerty phone but it's only meant to work on CDMA. But guess what, you can get it working on GSM if you solder off a chip and install your own SIM card slot. Unfortunately the phone will not work in T-Mobile US due to difference in frequency. Even with this mod it'll only work in Europe or AT&T in US. Not all CDMA phones are SIM card slots, and if they do they prevent certain networks from being used.

Samsung for example is pretty good on allowing their phones to work on all networks. The Skyrocket is a AT&T phone that won't work with T-Mobile frequencies until you flash a radio rom, and then it will. People are pretty sure the Photon Q could probably work if you had a radio rom to flash, but there doesn't seem to be one that exists that works on T-Mobile.

Believe me phone companies don't need to lock people out of their phones. They can just make them useless on other networks. Even taking a Verizon phone to Sprint is a roll of dice, even though they're both CDMA.

Right the ways phones are done now this is a moot point. The difference is if the phones in the future are really unlocked chip with all the radios then this means something. So people can get all excited and talk about thier old phones they have now all they want doesnt mean anything yet. I think some of he newer higher end phones are like this but not many

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Your first house is mortgaged when you pay that off your saying you shouldn't have the right to modify the house?

Well.. in the case of a phone and carrier, having an unlocked phone allows you to stop paying the carrier (when you switch). If you could do a home improvement project that would allow you to stop paying your mortgage, then I'd bet banks would stop giving people mortgages without protection.

It's pretty hard to compare though, technology makes things possible that has never before been possible so the laws that are on the books don't apply. It's how the carriers get away with stuff like locking phones in the first place.

 

[tomkaten]

That still doesn't make it right. You can't get a phone from your carrier before your previous contract expires, can you ? You're bound by those papers you've signed, not by the locked phone they just gave you. Why go the extra mile then ? To make a quick buck come contract expiration time ? That's just sad.

I wouldn't worry about the carrier absorbing its expenses in a couple of years' time through the overpriced service you're getting and the large discounts they probably get from manufacturers. You're right, technology requires new rules, but how about giving them some thought and setting them up to serve the citizen and not the big companies ?

 

[Guest]

"If you think about it though, locking a phone to a network sorta makes sense because of the way phones are often paid for. It's been normal (until recently) to have your carrier pay for most, or all, of your phone if you signed a 2 year contract. "

That's what the cancellation fee is for (or could include).