Good deal for consumers. Vox populi est vox dei. Bert ------------------------------------------- http://www.rethink-wireless.com/2010/07/27/apples-control-slips-us-green-lights-jailbreaking.htm Apple's control slips after US green lights 'jailbreaking' Hacking phone to instal unauthorized apps is not illegal, though may still void warranty By CAROLINE GABRIEL Published: 27 July, 2010 Apple suffered another blow to its iron control of its mobile platform, with a US federal ruling that 'jailbreaking' phones is not illegal. The decision came from the US Copyright Office and Library of Congress and quashed Apple's bid to criminalize the hacking of iPhones to install unauthorized apps. The decision on Monday added jailbreaking to a list of practises that do not violate the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) in the US. Modifications to the operating system purely to allow it to support an unauthorized but legal application are "fair uses", wrote Marybeth Peters, Register of Copyrights, in the ruling. "Apple's objections to the installation and use of unapproved applications appears to have nothing to do with its interests as the owner of copyrights in the computer programs embodied in the iPhone, and running the unapproved applications has no adverse effect on those interests," the ruling continued. "Rather, Apple's objections relate to its interests as a manufacturer and distributor of a device, the iPhone." Peters went on to refer to jailbreaking as "innocuous at worst and beneficial at best". Apple submitted its case to the Copyright Office in February 2009 after the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) asked for a DMCA exemption in 2008 for cellphone jailbreaking. The EFF, backed mainly by open source players like Mozilla, had asked the Office to allow users to instal apps that were not available through Apple's own App Store, without fear of penalty. The issue is a critical one for vendors and operators, since they see control of their stores - and associated revenue streams - as important to their mobile web business models. Even more importantly, they aim to differentiate themselves by creating a carefully managed user experience, even if this sometimes angers users - as with Apple's exclusion of Adobe Flash. The issue is not iPhone specific - AT&T, for instance, attracted fierce criticism for preventing users of its Android phones, such as Motorola Backflip, from downloading apps from other sources than the official Android Market. However, since the Market does not have a rigid approval process like Apple's or RIM's, the impact on the Android sector will be less. The EFF commented in a statement: "Copyright law has long held that making programs interoperable is fair use. It's gratifying that the Copyright Office acknowledges this right and agrees that the anticircumvention laws should not interfere with interoperability." While jailbreaking and SIM unlocking are now effectively legal in the US, the procedures may still void the warranty of the user's iPhone or iPad. It is estimated that about 10m IoS devices in current use have been jailbroken. Some analysts believe the ruling will encourage 'underground' app stores like Cydia to come in from the cold, and ZDnet's Jason Perlow even speculates that Adobe could get Flash onto the iPhone at last by providing its own jailbreaker to install Flash libraries and other apps. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You can UNSUBSCRIBE from the OpenDTV list in two ways: - Using the UNSUBSCRIBE command in your user configuration settings at FreeLists.org - By sending a message to: opendtv-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word unsubscribe in the subject line.