U.S. House Approves Compromise Cell Phone Unlocking Bill

The U.S. House of Representatives recently approved a bill regarding the unlocking of cell phones: H.R. 1123. Not everyone is happy about the current version.

Yet, the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act was approved by a strong favorable vote of 295-114, according to news reports.

The bill puts back an exemption that lets users unlock their cell phones. The earlier exemption that let consumers unlock cell phones without the approval of their wireless providers expired on Jan. 26, 2013. It had been part of an exemption associated with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

The new bill was supported by the Competitive Carriers Association, Consumers Union, CTIA, and Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council.

“The bipartisan Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act protects consumer choice by allowing consumers flexibility when it comes to choosing a wireless carrier,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), the bill’s top sponsor, said in a statement. “This is something that Americans have been asking for and I am pleased that the House of Representatives acted to restore the exemption that will allow consumers to unlock their cell phones.”

On the other hand, U.S. Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) opposed the new bill because it opposed bulk unlocking. "The last-minute change that was made in this bill… puts a real poison pill in this bill for consumer advocates such as myself," Polis was quoted by The Hill. "Many consumers won't be unlocking their phones themselves. There needs to be a market in unlocked phones."

Yet, U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said the bill “does not prevent the sale of unlocked bulk phones being sold and resold. It does not prevent the bulk sale of locked phones."

“If the bulk-unlocking ban stands, refurbishers could be forced to scrap working phones or ship them overseas instead of reselling them in the United States,” a Wired opinion article written by Kyle Wiens and Sina Khanifar, countered. That “hurts the people in the U.S. who can’t afford brand new connected devices and don’t have the option of super-cheap smartphones as people in other countries do (and which power a whole new wave of messaging applications there).”

“The passed unlocking legislation is basically great news for manufacturers, who can sell consumers a new phone instead of competing with the secondhand market,” the Wired article claims. “But it’s horrible news for consumers (especially if you think beyond the individual implications) as well as for the environment.”

An earlier bill was proposed in the House to restore unlocking of cell phones – by U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) It would have allowed for unlocking for tablets, cell phones, and all wireless devices, according to Wired. It was replaced by H.R. 1123.

H.R. 1123 still requires the approval of the U.S. Senate – where it may be amended by the Democratic majority. It also needs to be approved by President Obama.