Government rules jailbreaking and unlocking phones is legal!

[TheAndroidWorks]

AppleInsider | US government legalizes iPhone 'jailbreaking,' unlocking

Steve Jobs is probably having a bad day...

 

[HustlinDaily]

Nevermind. Misread it.

 

[HustlinDaily]

Lol some government official probably owns an iPhone, hates how locked down it is, so snuck it into a bill.

 

[Swizz]

The precedent for this should have been set years back when it was deemed legal for you to modify anything you legally purchased in any way you would like. I remember when PSX modding was the thing to do (yes, I soldered the chip to my board) and there wasn't a damn thing Sony could do about it, legally.

Figures Apple would need to be told specifically that they can't do crap. Divas.

 

[Alieno]

This is a symbolic move that really wont affect anything.

Honestly, has anyone ever gone to jail or been arrested for jailbreaking an iphone? Of course not. Has apple ever sued someone for jailbreaking an iphone? Of course not

Sent from my Iphone 4.

 

[HustlinDaily]

Yeah wouldn't affect anything but nice to know that there is no grey area within this.

Didn't Apple call for people who jailbreak Jobs' phones (yes I said it, it isn't your phone, it is Apple's phone) to be fined?

 

[jree]

This is a symbolic move that really wont affect anything.

Honestly, has anyone ever gone to jail or been arrested for jailbreaking an iphone? Of course not. Has apple ever sued someone for jailbreaking an iphone? Of course not

Sent from my Iphone 4.

Absolutley not. But rumors of updates purposley bricking an iphone if it is jailbroken are definitley out there. Just like Motorola locking down the X so no one can mod it. Or ATT not allowing the Captivate to install non market apps

 

[riffdex]

No one can claim this news is bad for consumers. Even so, as has been said, not a lot will change at this point. Jailbroken phones will still have their warranties voided (not like they will catch you). Phone companies will still make it difficult to jailbreak/unlock these phones. Downloading apps illegally/using apps illegally (a big reason why some people jailbreak their phones - at least iPhones, I think) will still be illegal. If you do jailbreak your phone though, you won't have to be worried about the legality of that action anymore. Luckily we don't live in an age where phone companies track everything on our phone and can know when we jailbreak/root our stuff

 

[ari-free]

Or ATT not allowing the Captivate to install non market apps

Solved!
How To: Remove AT&T From Captivate &raquo BriefMobile
You need to follow directions but it is possible

 

[bdforte69]

This is a huge step in the right direction; however, it really doesn't change anything. People have been rooting devices for years, and it has always resulted in a 'voided' warranty. Voided if you are caught that is! The positive is that now the hypothetical concept of being prosecuted for doing so has been removed. Even if very few, if any, people actually ever were.

The part of all of this that I find the most intriguing is how devices that are exclusive to a particular carrier can now be legally 'unlocked' to be used with any carrier one so chooses. This sounds really cool, but when you break it down it really doesn't change much either....

Allow me to explain. Say you buy a device from Verizon that is an exclusive device to VZW. Now, you get that device unlocked so that you can use it on Sprint networks. Your Verizon warranty will be instantly voided. How do you now get a valid warranty, and with which carrier would it be with? Same with buying that same device from Best Buy or anywhere else for that matter. As soon as you unlock it, poof goes your warranty.

So, will we see big retailers like BB selling unlocked devices and then you get to choose your carrier? Oh that would be sweet, just like it is in Japan now from my understanding, but I bet the major carriers here won't go along willingly.

The other problem is what about the sweet upgrade discount that we all love? If you buy that exclusive VZW device and sign a new contract, you can't just cancel your contract and tell them "I'll just keep the device, thank you very much!" How many people really want to pay $500 bones for a device and then get to choose your carrier?

These developments are definitely great, but when it comes down to it, the carriers still have us by the balls I'm afraid.

 

[ari-free]

It's very good for cydia. They won't have to worry about Apple's lawyers.

 

[xmr405o]

This is a huge step in the right direction; however, it really doesn't change anything. People have been rooting devices for years, and it has always resulted in a 'voided' warranty. Voided if you are caught that is! The positive is that now the hypothetical concept of being prosecuted for doing so has been removed. Even if very few, if any, people actually ever were.

The part of all of this that I find the most intriguing is how devices that are exclusive to a particular carrier can now be legally 'unlocked' to be used with any carrier one so chooses. This sounds really cool, but when you break it down it really doesn't change much either....

Allow me to explain. Say you buy a device from Verizon that is an exclusive device to VZW. Now, you get that device unlocked so that you can use it on Sprint networks. Your Verizon warranty will be instantly voided. How do you now get a valid warranty, and with which carrier would it be with? Same with buying that same device from Best Buy or anywhere else for that matter. As soon as you unlock it, poof goes your warranty.

So, will we see big retailers like BB selling unlocked devices and then you get to choose your carrier? Oh that would be sweet, just like it is in Japan now from my understanding, but I bet the major carriers here won't go along willingly.

The other problem is what about the sweet upgrade discount that we all love? If you buy that exclusive VZW device and sign a new contract, you can't just cancel your contract and tell them "I'll just keep the device, thank you very much!" How many people really want to pay $500 bones for a device and then get to choose your carrier?

These developments are definitely great, but when it comes down to it, the carriers still have us by the balls I'm afraid.

Agreed, it doesn't stop the manufacturer or carrier to void your warranty if they find out your phone is rooted or unlocked. I was never scared of going to jail but more so about voiding my warranty.

 

[TheBrit]

I looked at this thread to find out *which* goverment. People outside the USA do actually use this forum. I suggest a thread title change to US Government rules jailbreaking and unlocking phones is legal!

As far as I know it's never been illegal to root/jailbreak anything here in the UK.

 

[anomaly]

Another reason the Nexus One was actually a good idea? If you root it, did it void your warranty?

 

[Swizz]

Oi. Seriously, Brit? Get over it.