Unlocking smartphones after 1/26/13 will be more difficult

[jsconyers]

Unlocking new smartphone becomes harder Saturday - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/25/tech/mobile/smartphone-unlocking-illegal/)

Interesting. I am surprised I haven't heard more about this before now.

[fourstringfuror]

This has never been a problem for me, only because I've never swtiched carriers.

The issue seems to center on the idea of software. I understand where the carriers are coming from, but I don't think it's a strong argument.

[WhatsNotTaken]

Are they making it harder, or just making it "illegal?"

[tsac]

Illegal or harder makes no difference when the unlock code become unavailable.

Cell phone unlocking becomes a crime on Saturday | TechBlog | a Chron.com blog (http://blog.chron.com/techblog/2013/01/cell-phone-unlocking-becomes-a-crime-on-saturday/)

unlocked phones can be set to fully automatic so the government will ban any that can hold large capacity memory clips. Transfer will not be tolerated.

[rambo47]

Are they making it harder, or just making it "illegal?"

It's actually going to be illegal. They have interpreted the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in such a way that unlocking a phone without the permission of the carrier is a crime. They had made this ruling a while back but put a 3-month stay on enforcement. That 3-month stay expires on January 26th.

[dc/dc]

It's actually going to be illegal. They have interpreted the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in such a way that unlocking a phone without the permission of the carrier is a crime. They had made this ruling a while back but put a 3-month stay on enforcement. That 3-month stay expires on January 26th.

But you can still get the carrier to unlock if you meet their requirements, and you can still buy phones online. I actually hope that this means that carriers will have to unlock a device if I walk into their shop and pay full-price like they do overseas.

[tsac]

I would suggest the carriers wont allow the unlocking because in their minds it will prevent a customer from defecting to another carrier. The cost Verizon and ATT have to give Apple for the I-Phones is somewhere around $200 per phone to keep the cost lower for it's customers. A two year contract does not cover that and other costs to support the smartphones. My bet is they will resist.

[Soapm]

Back in the old days you had to say you were traveling overseas to get your phone unlocked.

[jsconyers]

Looks like a step in the right direction

The White House Supports the Right to Unlock Your Cellphone—but That's Just the Start - Derek Khanna - The Atlantic (http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/03/the-white-house-supports-legalizing-unlocked-cell-phones-but-thats-just-the-start/273696/)