The White House Agrees with You: Cell Phone Unlocking should be Legal

A while back I did an article on the recent ruling by the Library of Congress, that unlocking your cell phone so that it can be used on a different carriers network is now illegal. I knew this was gonna be a hot button issue, I even signed an online petition to reconsider the decision ( and as a rule, I usually don't sign petitions ) and so did 114,321 others who were no doubt as pissed as I was.

Well folks, It appears that the Obama administration agrees with those of us outraged because we can't use a device that we have already paid for on the carrier of our choosing. The White House even sent out an email to signers of the petition, pledging it's support to find a legislative fix to the problem.

So, what does this mean? Well don't go unlocking your old phone just yet, because even though the White House is on the case, a legal solution may be months away ( it's not like the folks in Washington don't have bigger problems right now, like... um, part of the federal government shutting down for budget reasons ). The up side is that at least the government has finally acknowledged that the cell phone company's and manufacturers have been, on some level, violating your basic rights as a property owner for years by telling you what service you can and can not use after you are no longer financially or contractually obligated to them anymore. The FCC is currently reviewing the issue to determine the best course of action and has urged the Library of Congress to reconsider and seek a better solution.

Library of Congress says you don't have the Right to Unlock your Phone

Bad news for consumers who want to unlock there mobile phones so they can be used on other networks. As of Saturday, January 26 2013, it's is now illegal to unlock an exclusive (carrier specific) phone and use it on another network. The decision came from the US Library of Congress's Copyright Office, which is responsible for reviewing and overseeing the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, back in October of last year. The Copyright Office gave people a 90 day grace period to unlock there phone before it officially became law. That grace period expired yesterday...

The new restrictions against unlocking phones do not extend to Jailbreaking phones, such as the iPhone, to allow them to run applications not supported in the App Store.

The LOC decision was based on evidence that consumer do have alternatives (such as purchasing an unlocked phone from Amazon), and what they considered a failure by opposition to prove that this will adversely affect consumers or the phone market.

Many feel that this new ruling will however limit consumer choice and hurt resale value for individuals looking to sell their old phones.  Entreprenuer Sina Khanifar has started a petition to the White House, asking the LOC to reverse it's decision and support a bill to legalize unlocking phones.

Read my Editorial Article on Digital Rights Here...Articles Section