[Follow-Up] Senator Amy Klobuchar Intoduces Bill to Legalize Unlocking Cell Phones

Discussion in 'Android News' started by dgstorm, Mar 5, 2013.

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  1. LoneWolfArcher

    LoneWolfArcher Silver Member

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    Well you are forgetting one very important factor: a company's IP. Tech companies are only as good as their IP. So this is why the situation is more complicated than simply saying "a consumer can do whatever they want with their device". Again, I see your points, but I also see why the wireless companies are circling the wagons on this stuff. Especially since then consumers also want support even after doing "whatever they want".

    Try buying a car, not changing the oil, and then try to get a new engine under the new car warranty. Doesn't work that way. If you want the OEM's support then you have to follow their rules.
     
    #13 LoneWolfArcher, Mar 6, 2013
  2. LoneWolfArcher

    LoneWolfArcher Silver Member

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    I very much concur with what you are saying. but the caveat should be that once you've removed that software, unlocked the phone, rooted, etc, then the orig. wireless carrier is under no obligation to support your device.l
     
    #14 LoneWolfArcher, Mar 6, 2013
  3. dgstorm

    dgstorm Editor in Chief
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    Agreed. Although that seems like a non-issue. By the time you are finished with your contract, the 1 year warranty will already be up on the device, so there would be no support anyway. Plus, it would be ridiculous to think the first carrier should support your device if you switch to a different one. This would also apply even if you paid the "break-up fee" to leave before your contract was up. The first carrier shouldn't be expected to support your device if you left them, even if it is still under warranty.

    If you are experiencing a hardware related manufacturer's defect, then the OEM that built your device should still offer you support, if it is still under warranty (and is not related to you switching carriers.)

    It doesn't seem like these issues are that hard to solve with a bit of logical thinking. I think the problem many folks have with the whole issue altogether is it seems illogical that cell phone unlocking is illegal to begin with.

    I remember reading a book several years ago that talked about silly and ridiculous laws still in effect (but not necessarily enforced). There was a small town in the U.S. that still had a really stupid law on the books (that should have never been a law to begin with). It was illegal for women to wear high heels. This was because a woman once broke her ankle by getting her heel caught in a street grate.

    Obviously, this law simply throws the baby out with the bath water. It's not too much of a stretch to say the same thing about the illegal cell phone unlocking law. Of course we need to protect the IP of a company, but the solution must also be balanced to make sense and not hurt consumer choice either.
     
    #15 dgstorm, Mar 6, 2013
  4. kodiak799

    kodiak799 Gold Member

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    The carriers may be lobbying on behalf of the OEM's, but I still fail to see how the carriers really benefit from this. They don't make money on phones, but the OEM's certainly see a bump from people needing to buy a new phone when they switch carriers.

    Carriers like to lock you up for 2-yrs, but they certainly don't need to tie those contracts to phones. They'll adapt. The locking ban was really an unnecessary law, but there is a [very] limited consumer benefit to lifting the ban for which I'll give a thumbs up.
     
    #16 kodiak799, Mar 6, 2013
  5. MissionImprobable

    MissionImprobable Silver Member

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    Your post makes no sense. We're talking about people who have fulfilled all obligations on their contract wanting to change companies. It's akin to someone's warranty being up and the dealership telling them that they still have to come there for all future repair work if they want to continue driving their car. It's not causing the OEM issues because people would still be buying devices as needed. The only one it hurts are wireless companies gouging people on prices.
     
    #17 MissionImprobable, Mar 6, 2013
  6. LoneWolfArcher

    LoneWolfArcher Silver Member

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    Actually you would have to go to a dealership for that OEM for recall work. Which means you couldn't do whatever you wanted to that vehicle, like remove the catalytic converter. It isn't the same but it's similar. As consumers we too often want our cake and eat it too.
     
    #18 LoneWolfArcher, Mar 8, 2013
  7. MissionImprobable

    MissionImprobable Silver Member

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    What recall work? I said repair work, as in from the normal course of use, not from a manufacturer's defect.
     
    #19 MissionImprobable, Mar 8, 2013
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