Unlock now punishable under law? [ Edited ]

[Mgreenlee]

From Jan 25, 2013: "Starting this Saturday, it becomes illegal in this great land to unlock a new smartphone without the permission of the carrier that locked it in the first place."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57565730-1/unauthorized-unlocking-of-smartphones-becomes-illegal...

"So if you want an unlocked phone, you've got to buy it that way, starting Saturday -- that's when a 90-day transition period to the new rule runs out."

I can see enforcement being an issue with this new ruling... we shall see how it pans out.

[R_ORyan]

What was interesting was that this law was defered to the Library of Congress to make the ruling.

So "jail breaking" a phone that is YOUR property is now a Federal crime.   Let's all think about this and the insanity behind it! 

[Mgreenlee]

It's crazy for sure! Carrier contracts might be updated to include language about who owns the phone until your contract is up... I wonder how this will be handled in the courts. It doesn't seem like the right way to go.

[JCPOPESCU]

I have often thought...

It seems that any kind of "tech innovation" is not bringing newer and better products and services to market.  Rather how to further extract revenues from a given customer base.

Examples of such are things like utility company "smart" meters.   Here in California we recently had any number of structure fires caused by impropper, if not outright dangerous, installation of "smart" electricity meters.  Putting a radio transmitter near a natural gas meter ?  I don't think so. 

"Smart" meters were done more for utility company profits in peak demand energy pricing and the elimination of meter readers.  Out here in CA, in "PG and E Territory" we pay some of the highest per unit electricity rates AND have the amongst the LEAST reliable service.  

I see the inability to "unlock" a phone as contrary to the whole notion and concept of a free market this nation was founded on and so champions.  Why not let the user decide who best suits as a carrier provider and let the market shake out the less qualified and unsatisfactory players ?  Sounds too much like free and competitive enterprise.

A recent San Francisco Chronicle article pointed out the USA is amongst one of the SLOWEST nations in terms of internet broadband speed.   Behind even the Czech Republic and South Korea !    I'm not surprised as Verizon, AT and T, and big telco have fought, practically tooth and nail, any suggestions of free wifi.

In my opinion there should be fibreoptic to the sidewalk and let's dispose of the monopolies and "franchise" agreements big telco uses to lock down their markets in municipalities.  All we are getting is more and increasingly costly bills.  

Not innovation.  Not better products and services.  Just more bills.

[R_ORyan]

As this is now a Federal crime, does this fall under the FBI, Secret Service, and some other agency when it comes to enforcement? 

[acp19809]

So do I own these devices, or am I just renting them from the carrier? Did any of the legislators who passed this ever READ the constitution????

[yleedice]

I just found this piece on Slashdot about a We the People petition to "We ask that the White House ask the Librarian of Congress to rescind this decision, and failing that, champion a bill that makes unlocking permanently legal."

http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/01/31/0214258/what-you-can-do-about-the-phone-unlocking-fiasco?

As of a few minutes ago, it's just over 11,000 short of the number needed to get a response.

[JCPOPESCU]

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acp19809 wrote:

So do I own these devices, or am I just renting them from the carrier? Did any of the legislators who passed this ever READ the constitution????

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The very short answer to your question:

You probably do not own the device in the same fashion you do a home, automobile, or other tangible goods you consume.

The answer lies in the end user license agreement for the device in question.

If you purchased any version of Windows from the first release to the current either as stand alone software or as a value added to a bundled PC you do not own Windows. 

You own a license to use and run windows.  This is made very explicit in the end user license agreement in every version of Windows released.

[Fritz]

Most deals for idiot-phones are, similar to software purchases, merely leases. They retain the property right and allow you to use it as long as you comply with certain conditions. It's evil, but what can we do?