Soon, you will no longer be breaking the law if you unlock your cellphone.
On Friday, the House
of Representatives passed a bill that would make it legal for consumers
to open the digital locks on their cellphones so that they could more
easily switch wireless carriers. The Senate has already passed the
bill. Under a law intended to prevent copyright infringement, consumers
now risk fines of up to $500,000 and five years in jail if they unlock their cellphones without the consent of their wireless carriers.
The restrictions
against unlocking are deeply unpopular with the public. Once they have
fulfilled their contracts with their wireless carriers, which typically
involve paying for wireless service for a couple of years, many people
want to use their devices on the network of another wireless company,
from whom they could obtain lower prices, faster Internet speeds and
other perks.
Last year, more than 114,000 people signed a White House petition asking the government to get rid of penalties for unlocking cellphones.
Cellphone unlocking
was actually legal until last year, when an earlier exemption to
copyright laws granted by the Library of Congress, the overseer of the
United States Copyright Office, expired.
Some carriers have
unlocked cellphones for consumers for some time, but the new law will
make it easier for consumers to do it themselves or through a third
party.
“It’s a positive for
consumer choice that you are going to be able to unlock in a variety of
ways,” said Christopher Lewis, vice president of government affairs for
Public Knowledge, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group.
President Obama, in a statement
on Friday, said he looked forward to signing the bill, called the
Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, into law.
“The bill Congress
passed today is another step toward giving ordinary Americans more
flexibility and choice, so that they can find a cellphone carrier that
meets their needs and their budget,” he said.
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