http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/ Engadget Mobile Comments for T-Mobile jumps on the bandwagon, throws the book at prepaid unlockers http://mobile.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://mobile.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/
I'm tired of all these silly lawsuits... ]]>Aug 6th 2008 9:35PMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/
You have to wait 90 days with T-Mobile to have them give you an unlock code.

Let alone, I doubt Fone Xchange and ASPAC are legally unlocking them.]]>Aug 6th 2008 9:48PMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/
If the companies had paid the full price the carrier would normally charge for the phones out of contract/non pre-paid branded T-Mobile probably wouldn't care one bit. ]]>Aug 7th 2008 2:02AMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/
I'm not sure either Cliff. You don't sign a contract when buying the phones, and the US Copyright Office has specifically ruled that unlocking cellphones is exempt from DMCA prosecution - the only law I can think of that would otherwise apply. While the exemption has some caveats, notably that it only applies to phones you own (you can't unlock for others as a commercial enterprise), at the stage people are talking about above, they are unlocking phones they themselves own.

Even if it were to be found illegal, it's also open to question whether T-Mobile can do anything about it. It's no more difficult to have the phones unlocked in the destination country than it is to have them unlocked here. The only difference is that the person reselling the phones will need a partner in a country with no unlocking laws.

The real solution is for mobile phone operators to start doing away with the subsidized phone model, which achieves little but to push up monthly subscriptions and prepaid charges anyway. Subsidized phones may lower the barrier to entry, but they undercut the usability of the service and encourage wasteful practices, such as yearly phone upgrades and treating the phones themselves as disposable. With enough unlocked GSM phones in circulation, the need to lower the barrier to entry is reduced anyway - just start selling SIM cards, and let people use old, unlocked, phones if they really can't afford a new one.]]>Aug 7th 2008 8:32AMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/Aug 6th 2008 9:56PMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/Aug 6th 2008 10:08PMhttp://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/http://mobile.engadget.com/2008/08/06/t-mobile-jumps-on-the-bandwagon-throws-the-book-at-prepaid-unlo/Aug 6th 2008 10:08PM