Wireless Carriers Now Have To Unlock Your Phone!
Tired of your wireless carrier’s service or plans? The Cellular Telephone Industries Association’s (CTIA) new standards on unlocking phones go into effect for all mobile service providers in the US today. This allows you to unlock your phone and switch carriers once out of contract.
President Obama signed a law that deemed it legal for mobile users to unlock their phones last August. From today, carriers who have voluntarily committed to follow the CTIA’s standards will unlock their customers’ devices on request.
AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and Verizon will comply with the CTIA’s code, and allow customers to unlock their phones at no extra charge. Bluegrass and Cellcom are also signed up to the code, but do not lock their devices.
As the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) notes in its FAQ on unlocking, a device is eligible to be unlocked by a participating provider after the user has fulfilled the applicable service contract, completed the device installment plan or paid an early termination fee.
With prepaid devices, users will have to wait a year before they can have their devices unlocked.
The FCC says that these carriers must notify postpaid customers when their devices are eligible for unlocking, while prepaid customers must only be informed at the time of purchase.
Of course we here at Ctrl Alt Repair are Pro-Choice when it comes to your cellular rights, and freedom to explore, unlock, tweak, and configure your device. If you feel the same way read our blog post on jailbreaking, or rooting, your smartphone and learn how to unlock the true powers of your smartphone.
If you’re ready ditch your providor and make the switch, or just want to sell your device and upgrade, you can look up your carrier’s unlocking policy below
Get started unlocking your phone:
➤ Consumer Code for Wireless Service [CTIA]
