What I find strange is that hackers and consumers somehow think they've outsmarted Apple.
Let's all think for a minute... Apple already released an update for the iPhone. When people modded their phones, almost everything was reset in order to update the phone. If the iPhone is hacked for use with other service providers, any critical updates for the phone might not be possible.
At this point, if there were any future problems with the phone, Safari, Google Maps, an iPod update to the phone, or anything else... Apple would make updates available through iTunes. And, if they are smart (which I'm sure they are), they can do the software update via iTunes and confirm and finalize the update through the AT&T wireless network.
At this point, hacking the phone isn't a good idea. I'd say freedom is still 5 years away.