Originally Posted by ryleyinstl:
I belive that French telecommunications law states that all mobile phones must be offered to customers unlocked so that my also be another avenue for a unlocked GSM Pre.
I live in France and am playing the waiting game, so I am wondering if that was the reason Palm was taking their sweet time in releasing it here. In the three countries listed above, none of the providers are legally obliged to provide unlock codes. In France (according to Wikipedia) you have the right to them, either against a fee, or for free in the last six months. Exclusivity is also against the law.
For at least up to early 2010, Palm has got it so all Pre's sold (CDMA and GSM) are locked to a single vendor.
Thanks so much.
Would somebody please remind me how the heck this is going to help WebOS dominate the world??? I secretly suspect that they are incapable of producing the necessary volumes anyway, so they might as help out their bottom line by a few juicy exclusivity agreements.
I didn't add the wikipedia simlock entry for France since there's no plans for release there yet, but here's a paste: In France, SIM locks are not prohibited. However, the mobile operator must inform the consumer of the existence of a SIM lock. The subscriber has the right to request that the SIM lock be removed at any time. No later than 6 months prior to the conclusion of the contract, the mobile operator must "systematically and free of charge" provide the subscriber with a procedure to deactivate the SIM lock.Operators may charge a fee for removing the SIM lock prior to the 6-month deadline.
Apparently Singapore is the only country which expressly forbids simlocks. In Europe, the European regulators left it up to national law to decide.