Unauthorized unlocking of new phones to be illegal in U.S.

Unauthorized unlocking of new phones to be illegal in U.S.


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Not allowed? I would have thought ownership rested with the purchaser not some Librarian.

DMC is a law that the Hollywood and Music industry with their big dollar lobbies in Wash DC got through congress sometime ago. It only gets worse as you can see with this latest ruling. What ever happened to "Fair Use" is a question many Americans are asking.

I might can see it under contract just not if I paid full pop for the phone and wanted to.

So much for that whole "Land of the free" thing huh?


Now, I doubt that our founding fathers had the iPhone in mind when they wrote that, but still, add it to the ever-growing list of things that is technically illegal to do with no good reason as to why.

An unenforceable law is worthless....

osxx said:

I might can see it under contract just not if I paid full pop for the phone and wanted to.

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Most phones, if sold without a contract (pay full price), are sold unlocked. The iPhone I know is unlocked it you want to outright buy it.

I'm not 100% sure that story is accurate. It seems - according to this ars technica article - there is a grandfather clause (just like about any law in the US) so if you already own the phone before the date - you can still unlock it.
Jailbreaking now legal under DMCA for smartphones, but not tablets | Ars Technica

In other words, phones you already have, as well as those purchased between now and next January, can be unlocked. But phones purchased after January 2013 can only be unlocked with the carrier's permission.

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but I am not a lawyer - and have not read the actual statement - just found another article.

I don't think the law is unenforceable - you don't go after the individual - you go after the unlocking services and software.

I would have though the US government has got bigger issues to tackle than phone unlocking

louishen said:

I would have though the US government has got bigger issues to tackle than phone unlocking

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You would think...but sadly...no.

Yet another article
The Most Ridiculous Law of 2013 (So Far): It Is Now a Crime to Unlock Your Smartphone - Derek Khanna - The Atlantic
This one has a little more information on the law and the language.

Well Ivan if it was not for lawyers....we would not need lawyers. With respects to Randy B>Singer.

MacDude121 said:

You would think...but sadly...no.

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This isn't true. They do have bigger issues to focus on, but this is part of the charade to keep people occupied and not worrying about the "bigger issues" that they keep putting off, avoiding, or flat passing bad legislation.

I think just to rub it in, Canada is trying to pass a law to make it mandatory to unlock cell phones if requested.

Link to the CBC news aboot unlocking
Wireless fee, contract guidelines proposed by CRTC - Technology & Science - CBC News

Oh, gee, I'm scared. What most people don't know is that they actually have a bit of power in claims against cellphone providers.
This law is most likely solely created for the reason of stopping people from buying contract phones at a deal that makes the initial purchase + cancellation fee worthwhile. I travel overseas a lot, and it helps to be able to use your phone with multiple providers when traveling. If I unlock my phone, and still remain with the original phone service provider, and they go after me, good luck to them. Something similar happened to us when we had Verizon a while ago. Didn't work out well for them.
Consumer protection...something consumers know nothing about these days.

Also, with all the new free wifi phone apps, and the vast majority of free wifi available now a days, one more move from them and i'll just completely drop them.

RONE said:

This isn't true. They do have bigger issues to focus on, but this is part of the charade to keep people occupied and not worrying about the "bigger issues" that they keep putting off, avoiding, or flat passing bad legislation.

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I meant that they do not focus on the bigger issues, or they consider it more important to focus on making unlocking your smartphone illegal than fixing all of the more important issues that we have at the moment.

MacDude121 said:

I meant that they do not focus on the bigger issues, or they consider it more important to focus on making unlocking your smartphone illegal than fixing all of the more important issues that we have at the moment.

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Agreed.