Advocates of Handset Unlocking Rules Expect FCC Order Despite Trump Win

FCC commissioners in July unanimously approved an NPRM proposing that carriers unlock handsets 60 days after they’re activated, unless a provider determines a handset was purchased through fraud (see 2407180037). But the proposal has faced complaints from the political right questioning the agency's legal authority (see 2409240038). NTIA this week urged the FCC to approve aggressive rules (see 2411050048).

Tamara Preiss, Verizon vice president-federal regulatory and legal affairs, said her company considers handset unlocking a very important issue and one she has worked on since joining the carrier in 2008. “It’s a consumer issue that should have legs past this administration, if it doesn’t get done in the next couple of months,” she said.

Verizon agreed to a handset unlocking requirement tied to the nationwide 700 MHz upper C-block spectrum it bought in a 2008 auction (see 0803250101). Preiss noted that in 2019, the FCC allowed Verizon to delay locking handsets for 60 days to address fraud (see 1906250047).

Republicans and Democrats agree that deciding requirements “ad hoc,” as part of transactions, “is not the best way of governing,” Preiss said.

The NPRM passed “on a bipartisan basis with all five commissioners voting for it” and will make it easier for consumers to change providers, said Jeff Blum, EchoStar executive vice president-external and government affairs. “We think that’s good for competition, good for consumers,” Blum said: “Right now, it’s very confusing for consumers.” Blum predicted the FCC could act this year, given the broad support.

Blum noted that carriers face varying unlocking requirements. EchoStar’s Boost Mobile has a one-year unlocking mandate, he said. “You have a situation where there’s no regulatory parity and consumers don’t know the rules, and it’s already hard enough to switch carriers.” The rules would mean carriers could compete on the basis of price, network quality and the devices they offer, he said, adding a 60-day period should be more than sufficient to address fraud concerns.

Blum predicted that the debate within the FCC will be about the best time period for a mandate rather than whether to approve rules.

Phone unlocking “obviously promotes competition and the ability for people to switch,” said John Bergmayer, Public Knowledge legal director. “It’s about people taking their phones to a new carrier, but it’s also about the secondary market, it’s about people being able to buy cheaper … phones from a variety of sources,” he said: It’s about being able to take a phone “and hand it over to your relatives, your kids.”

Bergmayer predicted that the rules may appeal to Trump. Handset unlocking isn’t a political issue, but a populist one, with broad support, he said. “I would expect that to continue in the new administration.” Bergmayer acknowledged that as a progressive policy organization “we’re going to have our work cut out for us with the Trump administration.”

Phones stay in use longer today because the technology has “plateaued,” Bergmayer argued. Each year doesn’t see a “huge advance” where people feel they must upgrade, he said. “That’s how laptops have been, that’s how cars and refrigerators are -- that’s a natural place for technology to be."

Liz Chamberlain, director-sustainability at tech firm iFixit, said her company has urged a zero-day mandate and supported unlocking rules since 2013. “I realize that’s a big ask,” she said. The company’s primary focus is repair, but customers should be able to “get inside” devices they buy and have access to the software, she said.