Unlocking cellphones becomes legal in the US

The US House of Representatives have finally passed the bill, called S517 that allows a person to legally unlock his / her phone and switch between carriers.

According to an article on Ars Technica, "This is something that Americans have been asking for and I am pleased that we were able to work together to ensure the swift passage of legislation restoring the exemption that allowed consumers to unlock their cell phones," House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said in a statement published by National Journal.

US wireless carriers often tether, or "lock," smartphones to their networks to encourage consumers to renew their mobile contracts. Consumers, for their part, can often buy new devices at a heavily subsidized price in return for committing to long-term contracts with a single carrier.

Major carriers, including Verizon Wireless, AT&T Inc, Sprint Corp, T-Mobile US and U.S. Cellular, in December made a voluntary pledge to make it easier for consumers to unlock their cellphones, under pressure from consumer groups and the Federal Communications Commission.

Under previous law, those unlocking their phones without permission could face legal ramifications, including jail.

Consumer advocates have argued that customers should be allowed to sell their old devices to third parties that could unlock phones in bulk, something the wireless industry opposes.

According to Ars Technica, unlocking cellphones was illegal when the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) passed in 1998. Unlocking became legal again from 2006 to 2012 when the US Librarian of Congress granted an exemption, became illegal back again in 2013.