HONGXING wrote:
SP-unlocking is fully legal as opposed to IMEI changing, so don't worry - also it protects freedom of choice. It's not a warez thing like modchips.
Also a simlock is no "technical copy protection measure" to by circumvented.
Summary: simlocks are the "region lock codes" of the cellphone industry.
It is incorrect to state that SP unlocking is fully legal, with emphasis on the word "fully". As you well know, but I will say it for the benefit of others reading this, the simlock is primarily used to prevent the GSM phone from being used with a different cell service provider, usually by changing out a smart card chip inside the phone.
Changing out this chip is a feature of GSM phones, but sometimes the lock is used because cell phone companies will sell phones at a loss for very cheap prices in order to get you into a long term service contract. Usually they want to ensure the phone is used solely with that company for the duration of the contract in order to recoup their loss and generate profit.
This is "business model protection". Note, I did not say "copy" protection, and I am sure he knew that, but it is entirely besides the point. If you want to buy a phone that comes "unlocked", even from 3rd party cellphone shops, it is amazingly expensive. What costs $50 locked from ATT or Vodafone, costs $200 or more to purchase unlocked from nearly any 3rd party. This ratio of costs differences is fairly normal.
Lets get back to "legal". Depending on whether you want to cast a positive light or a negative light on the legality of the issue, you can say the simlock is more analogous to the Lexmark ink cartidge chip, or more analagous to DVD region codes.
Again for those who are not aware, there is a famous DMCA case where Lexmark, while selling inkjet printers for a loss, in order to charge high prices on replacement ink cartridges, started using a little chip on the cartridges so that only Lexmark cartridges would work. This had the impact of preventing cheaper 3rd party cartridges from working. Some 3rd parties figured out how the chip worked, and starting selling their own versions again. Lexmark sued in court under the DMCA, saying the 3rd parties defeated a technological protection measure that hurt Lexmarks business model. Fortunately, Lexmark lost the case, and a precedent was hopefully set here.
On the other hand, DVD region codes have not been tested in court. DVD region codes, as many know, prevents people from buying movies in one part of the world and playing them on a DVD player bought from, or located in, another part of the world. In this way, the movie studies can sell DVDs for different prices in each region, sell licenses to produce the same movie onto DVD to multiple regions where they don:t have to compete with each other on sales, or make sure people can:t buy a DVD from one region to watch in another region where the movie hasn:t yet been released to movie theatres. This is a technological protection measure to protect a business model, and it has NOT been tested in courts.
Now, I believe the original poster is being overly optimistic here over the issue of the legality of simlocks. It is neither fully legal, nor is it necessarily illegal. The cell phone companies and service providers frown VERY strongly on people hacking it, because it defeats the original purpose and business models built around it.
There are cottage industries in markets around the world, whether in Asia or Europe, and sometimes in the USA, where people can change simlocks for you, FOR A COST! Its almost impossible to find the information and software on how to do this for free, unless you hit the typical warez P2P sites. The fact that the original poster doesn't want to release the full source suggests a commercial intent, which isn't necessarily wrong, but he should be up front about it and many other aspects of the issue.
What does all of this mean for PS2DEV ? Well, discussion of how to break region-coding is disallowed in PS2DEV in order to not piss off Sony and hamper legitimate homebrew efforts. Until, like the Lexmark case, region-coding is tested in courts and declared a legitimate "fair use right", we should consider the details and solicitation of help for cracking them something to not be discussed here. IMHO.
And until then, one should more properly think of simlocks as the "region codes" of the cellphone industry, and treat it accordingly here as well.
(disclaimer: I hate region-codes, I hate simlocks, and I hate silly Lexmarks, but my personal feelings are irrelevant to the issue of whether its a good idea to jump into a hot-tub before making sure the water isn't scalding hot.)
