U.S. Government to Explicitly Allow iPhone Jailbreaking

[rwilliams]

:
What is left to gain? Some really poor applications that didn't make the cut? Use of tethering when you didn't sign up for it with AT&T? Use of T-Mobile's network that explicitly breaks the AT&T exclusivity that's legally in place between them and Apple? What is there to gain from this?

This statement leads me to believe that you clearly have not jailbroken a phone and used Cydia apps such as Lockinfo, iFile, Attachment Saver, Safari Download Manager, SBSettings, SSH, etc. There are plenty of great apps that add functionality to the iPhone that really should be there from the jump.

 

[s8film40]

4. Apple made it the role of the government by making it "illegal" to jailbreak. Apple cannot be the Judge, Juror and executioner.

What! Apple never made anything illegal, they're not a government, not sure what your talking about. Nothing has changed here. It's still legal to Jailbreak your phone and it still voids the warranty. I'm confused why is everyone so excited about this?

 

[cmaier]

So...do warranties still uphold now that it's legal? Or can Apple still terminate them?

Apple can still terminate them. Apple can still also put licensing restrictions on the software, and, depending on what you do, you may still be liable for creating a derivative work under the copyright code.

What this does mean is that liability under the dmca provisions is gone, at least.

 

[stuffradio]

+1

anybody who's saying that this whole thing is good, they really dont like apple's way of marketing to begin with

Marketing and consumer experience are two different things. I hope Microsoft sees this and realizes that the console market could be next for a target making modding your console legal. You don't exactly have to honour the warranty I guess, just don't cut off our services if we mod.

I bring up Microsoft (or any other company like Sony) for Consoles because one argument people were making is that the Console market is very closed down too. I see this changing in the next 5 years and opening it up way more to indie developers.

 

[Intarweb]

I can't believe some idiots here are actually against this. You purchased the hardware and you should be able to do whatever the hell you want to do with it.

 

[Shanpdx]

Update 2:

Some observers have pointed out the the Library of Congress ruling today also addresses the issue of mobile phone unlocking, which involves moving a device to another wireless carrier for which support is not generally offered. Today's ruling only states, however, that copyright concerns can not be used to prohibit unlocking of mobile phones under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Carriers are still free to prevent unlocking in many circumstances and can pursue cases against individuals by citing breach of contract under the carriers' Terms of Service.

 

[TennisandMusic]

Wouldn't this, by extension, mean that the EULA for OSX is also non enforceable? If jailbreaking your phone is "fair use", how is installing a purchased OS on hardware you own, also not "fair sure"? I don't see it as much of a stretch.

 

[Shanpdx]

ATT might sue you if you

unlock it - from the update 2.

 

[cmaier]

I can't believe some idiots here are actually against this. You purchased the hardware and you should be able to do whatever the hell you want to do with it.

Too bad that's not actually what happened. All this means is no DMCA liability. You are still liable for breach of licensing agreements, copyright infringement for derivative works, etc.

 

[9secondadidas]

To me, this changes nothing. I've probably jail-broken about 2 dozen "i" devices and rooted 4-5 droid based devices and none of the owners were remotely concerned with legality. Most people just don't care. As little whistle Stevie Jobs might say, "it's a non-issue".

The only real issue here is whether or not they will warranty a hacked device. And I feel that they are well within their rights to deny service to anyone that's modified their device.

 

[s8film40]

I can't believe some idiots here are actually against this. You purchased the hardware and you should be able to do whatever the hell you want to do with it.

I agree with this completely, but I don't think it was ever illegal to begin with, so I'm confused why this is a big deal.

 

[andiwm2003]

yeah, and the government should control the weather and should make people eat right. the government's job is security, not making sure you're happy. how about you learn some discipline?

this post makes no sense.

it is not the govenments business to stop people from usiong a device they paid for in a way they like. what would you say if BMW sells you a car but then the government enforces BMW's rule that you can not transport books in it?

This is a step where the government goes out of the way instead of meddling with customers use of their cell phones.

unlocking is different because the unlockers cause financial damage and there the government has a role in upholding the law. but enforcing rules about jailbreaking is not government business.

 

[stelriah]

I can't believe some idiots here are actually against this. You purchased the hardware and you should be able to do whatever the hell you want to do with it.

it's pretty simple. when you buy the device you agree not to modify it. if you agree to do something, don't whine when you're asked to actually do it. if that clause wasn't in the agreement you might have a case.

 

[mtownfred]

More government instrusion

Although jailbreaking an iPhone sounds like a good idea so that the market can be freer for other apps, the truth of the matter is that this is just another intrusion on our freedoms by the government. More and more we're seeing government employees(re czars) are determining our fate and not the rule of law. I hate to say it but it looks like "1984" is just around the corner.

 

[yentrog31]

now to get these lazy bastards to jailbreak 4.0.1 =D roms galore

wow..it took all the way to post # 12 for the first begging idiot to surface.

 

[Maverick1337]

All right this all sounds awesome, but I think I am getting the wrong idea.

Does this mean I can jailbreak and unlock my phone and take it into Apple as-is and they can't refuse to help me with my problems?

Also, does this make jailbreaking officially legal even though in Apple's eyes they deem in illegal, therefore overriding what Apple says?

 

[Jamie 360]

I bet Apple will stil break the jailbreaks with each update.... Or Apple will some how one day make it where you can't hack the OS

That was my first thought. As someone who doesn't jailbreak the iPhones (had AT&T before the phone came out anyway), I'm hoping I won't have to keep downloading a 300 MB "update".

 

[cmaier]

Wouldn't this, by extension, mean that the EULA for OSX is also non enforceable? If jailbreaking your phone is "fair use", how is installing a purchased OS on hardware you own, also not "fair sure"? I don't see it as much of a stretch.

No. First, this has nothing to do with fair use. Fair use is a copyright concept, not a DMCA concept.

Second, you can license around fair use.

 

[stuffradio]

What! Apple never made anything illegal, they're not a government, not sure what your talking about. Nothing has changed here. It's still legal to Jailbreak your phone and it still voids the warranty. I'm confused why is everyone so excited about this?

Apple did try to make it illegal though... which is why the government had to "meddle" with this.

I too don't understand the American stigma with the Government. They should join the Black Bloc because that's what they stand for. All they do is walk around "protesting" destroying all the property around them and complain when there are cops with riot gear. It's like... HELLO you are setting cars on fire and smashing windows, I'd want the army out there arresting you.

 

[newtonrj]

to be fair, it is not Steve or APPLE it is the telecom operators like ATT, Verizon and T-Mobile.

1) AT&T - While not a fan of their walled garden, they are paying tribute (read: subsidies) to Apple for iPhone exclusivity. Jailbreaking will change their ability to enforce payment for that exclusivity.

2) Also on AT&T - Apple allows teathering but jailbreaking makes it a free add-on. Don't think for a moment that AT&T hasn't let Apple pull this problem around for them. AT&T really wants a controlled O/S. Jailbreakers use many times the data plans of clean-O/S users.

3) Jailbreaking that compromises functionality should not be the problem of the provider(s). They provided a product for specific use and environment. Changing the specific use and environment, changes their warranty of such. ie: Jailbreaking is OK but don't come see me about it.

It is and should be allowed to free phones clear of contracts and obligations.

-RJ

 

[thor79]

I agree. It is the role of the government to decide what is illegal or not. They aren't forcing Apple to allow jailbreaking. They are just saying that it isn't breaking the law.

Exactly...it is clarifying a gray area in the law...now it's pretty black and white when it comes to jailbreaking. To those complaining about government intrusion....shut up...I would love it if the DMCA didn't exist...but it does, and we have to live with it. When they make clarifications like this it is only helping consumers live within the law. That is an excellent use of government power IMO. You want to bitch...bitch about the existence of the DMCA...not this decision.

This doesn't mean Apple has to like it, stop trying to prevent jailbreaking, or honor a warranty for a jailbroken device...that's still up to them. This just means that if they ever had plans to sue jailbreakers for DMCA violations, those plans are now shot so long as this decision stands its ground.

When it comes to warranty service Apple should always have the right to dictate the terms for getting service. Doesn't mean I shouldn't be able to do what I want with my device though. So long as when it's in Apple's hands it's not jailbroken, it shouldn't matter at all.

 

[crookedbill]

wow, this is were my tax money is going? government meddling in the business affairs of one of the most innovative and successful brands of the last 30 years. last time i checked, apple/iphone didn't have a monopoly on the market. why is the government continuously attempting to penalize the success of a private business?

that's what happens when you think like a socialist/communist. you see who's on top, and you figure out ways to bring them right back down. whoever is on top MUST be doing something wrong. in our brave new world, everybody gets a trophy, but nobody actually wins.

 

[andiwm2003]

Wouldn't this, by extension, mean that the EULA for OSX is also non enforceable? If jailbreaking your phone is "fair use", how is installing a purchased OS on hardware you own, also not "fair sure"? I don't see it as much of a stretch.

this is a brilliant point. I like that. I think in europe this is already the case (not sure though because I'm not a lawyer).

 

[RodThePlod]

Nah, say hello to FREEDOM and CHOICE. Sure, this may open you up to viruses and malware, I doubt it thought, but freedom comes with these risk.

Make no mistake, the more jailbroken iPhones and iPod touches that are out there, the more these devices will be targeted by people with nefarious intentions...

RTP.

 

[SkippyThorson]

Uh, there are many fantastic APPs I use from Cydia that Apple doesn't allow because of their random rules. For example, QuickReply type apps which let you respond to texts without switching apps on the iphone. Once you use one, you wonder why the hell hasn't apple added this type of functionality.

That's not fantastic - that's trivially stupid, memory hogging trash, that some dev did so poorly or against so many "random rules" that Apple won't allow it. If they don't allow it, there's a reason, and no matter what it is, there IS a reason. If you want to respond, there's an App for that. It's called Messages.

We have multitasking now. Why not just take 10 seconds to finish what you were doing in the App, and multitask-on-over to the messages app, and use that nifty built in keyboard?

I'm convinced jailbreaking caters to those with no patience to do what can already be done, albeit a little slower.