Nik Frengle wrote
> ..
> I guess the message to all this is "welcome to the wonderful world of SIM
> card phones based on truly standard standards." It is not always pretty, but
> it will force the market (yes, even in Japan) to either address subsidies
> differently, or come up with more stringent terms (which Vodafone have done
> already), or better protection on phones. Or all three.
> ..
There is a fourth which is very common in the GSM world:
Carriers themselves could sell unlocked phones. Besides improved lock-down mechanisms, they could also provide a legal way to get an unlocked device. Why not offer unlocked phones for foreigners, (maybe with a special international software, e.g. pop email client, etc), in some stores at the regular, unsubsidized price? The prices for refurbished phones aren't really low either, so that would already mean less revenue for "hackers". At least it makes "hacked" phones less attractive when you can buy them legally too.
When I visit japan in a few weeks, I'd love to get one of the latest Sharp phones and I wouldn't mind to pay a regular (=high) price - but the only place to get one is the grey market. By offering no legal alternative, carriers somewhat helped to create this subculture, didn't they?
Cheers
Oliver
Received on Sun Sep 17 13:23:21 2006