Phone unlocking bill passes Congress
Posted by: Timothy Weaver on 07/25/2014 11:35 AM
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Consumers will be able to unlock their phones once President Obama signs the bill which passed Congress on Friday.
Senate Bill 517 overturns a January 2013 decision by the Library of Congress that ruled the unlocking of phones by consumers fell afoul of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
The Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act has made fast progress through Congress. It was passed by the Senate on July 16, just a week after it was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee, and on Friday by unanimous vote in the House of Representatives. It now waits to be signed into law.
The bill will also direct the librarian of Congress to determine whether other portable devices with wireless capability, such as tablets, should be eligible for unlocking.
Sina Khanifar, who kicked off the effort, said: “It took 19 months of activism and advocacy, but we’re finally very close to consumers regaining the right to unlock the phones they’ve legally bought."
Senate Bill 517 overturns a January 2013 decision by the Library of Congress that ruled the unlocking of phones by consumers fell afoul of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).
The Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act has made fast progress through Congress. It was passed by the Senate on July 16, just a week after it was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee, and on Friday by unanimous vote in the House of Representatives. It now waits to be signed into law.
The bill will also direct the librarian of Congress to determine whether other portable devices with wireless capability, such as tablets, should be eligible for unlocking.
Sina Khanifar, who kicked off the effort, said: “It took 19 months of activism and advocacy, but we’re finally very close to consumers regaining the right to unlock the phones they’ve legally bought."
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