It's been a long wait  ... but now users in the US can now "legally" unlock their phones without permission. Woohoo! There is however, you'll have to wait for the 90 day time limit to expire ... which is nothing really.

"From Saturday, Americans will have to get permission to "unlock" their smartphone so it runs on more than one mobile network. On that date a 90-day time limit that made it legal to unlock phones without permission is due to expire. Many Americans unlocked their phones to avoid running up big bills when travelling outside the US.

An online petition has been started asking for unlocking without permission to be made permanently legal. In October 2012, a change was made to the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) that temporarily allowed owners to unlock their smartphones without the need to ask their network beforehand.

Prior to the change, owners were typically charged a fee when they asked their operator to unlock a phone. Alternatively, users could buy unlocked versions of smartphones from manufacturers, but these handsets were typically more expensive than those locked to one network. When Saturday's deadline passes, users will again have to seek permission."

Source: BBC

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