iPhone Unlocked, it Was Only a Matter of Time

Implications: George Hotz of Glen Rock, N.J., spent his last summer before college figuring out how to "unlock" the iPhone, freeing it from being restricted to a single carrier, AT&T Inc. The procedure, which the 17-year-old laid out on his blog, raises the possibility of a cottage industry springing up to buy iPhones, unlocking them and then selling them to people who don't want AT&T service or can't get it, particularly overseas. AT&T Inc. spokesman Mark Siegel and Apple spokeswoman Jennifer Bowcock said their companies had no comment. Hotz said the companies had not been in touch with him.

Analysis: What happens in the digital/telephone age when one provider offers an exclusive phone that may or may not work on your current providers network?  Ways to make it work will happen.  

The original concept of the iPhone was to be an AT&T only product.  There should be no problem with that however in certain areas of the country AT&T coverage may not be available or does not work.  Thus, limiting the full potential of the iPhone.  It was only a matter of time that someone indeed would find a way to make it work on other carrier networks.

George Hotz of Glen Rock, N.J., spent his last summer before college figuring out how to "unlock" the iPhone, freeing it from being restricted to a single carrier, AT&T Inc.

Since the details of both hacks are public, Apple may be able to modify the iPhone production line to make new phones invulnerable. However this author is confident that another way will be found to 'unlock' the phone if the same type of restrictions are in place.

It should be noted that they is apparently no U.S. law against unlocking cell phones. Last year, the Library of Congress specifically excluded cell-phone unlocking from coverage under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.