According to a statement by AT&T, the company’s customers that use Apple iPhones can now request a phone be unlocked (allowing use with other carriers), under a new policy that went into effect on April 8. AT&T requires that a customer complete a two-year contract, upgrade under one of their upgrade policies, or pay the early termination fee to cancel a contract. The phone must not be active under another AT&T service agreement, and the customer’s account must be in good standing.
This change comes shortly after an AT&T customer meeting those criteria asked the company to unlock his iPhone 3GS and was refused. He complained to Apple CEO. Tim Cook, via email, and was ultimately granted an exception, with AT&T Partnership Operations informing they did so because of a request from Cook.
Until now, the only method to unlock iPhones was via jailbreaking. While effective, that process has always been subject to change and hassles. Jailbreaking makes use of security flaws in the phone’s operating system and Apple regularly plugs those holes with new firmware upgrades.
This policy change is long overdue, and most competing carriers use the CDMA network, not GSM, to limit options for switching. It’s honestly difficult to comprehend why AT&T ever fought the unlocking to begin with.
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