IT-Mobile and AT&T say US regulators should scrap a plan to require phones to be unlocked within 60 days of launch, saying locking phones to the carrier’s network makes it possible to offer cheaper phones to consumers. “If the Commission approves a uniform opening policy, consumers—not providers—will stand to lose the most,” T-Mobile wrote in an Oct. 17 filing with the Federal Communications Commission.
The proposed law has support from consumer advocacy groups that say it will give consumers more choice and lower their costs. IT-Mobile has been criticized for shutting down phones for up to a year, making it difficult to use the phone on a rival network. IT-Mobile says that with the 60-day opening rule, “consumers are at risk of losing access to free or heavily subsidized handset benefits because the proposal will force providers to reduce the list of their most compelling handset plans.”
If the proposed rule is enacted, “T-Mobile estimates that its prepaid customers, for example, will see subsidies reduced by 40 percent to 70 percent on both its low-end and high-end devices, such as the Moto G, Samsung A15, and iPhone 12,” the carrier said. “The handset unlocking mandate will also leave providers with little choice but to limit their handset supply to lower cost and lower performance calls.”
IT-Mobile and other carriers are responding to a call for public comment that began after the FCC passed a Notice of Proposed Suspension (NPRM) by a 5–0 vote. The FCC proposes to “require all cellular service providers to unlock handsets 60 days after the consumer’s handset is unlocked with the provider, unless within 60 days the service provider determines that the handset was purchased fraudulently.”
When the FCC proposed a 60-day unlock rule in July 2024, the agency criticized T-Mobile for locking up prepaid phones for a year. The NPRM stated that “T-Mobile recently extended its lock-in period for one of its brands, Metro by T-Mobile, from 180 days to 365 days.”
T-Mobile’s policy states that the carrier will only activate mobile devices on prepaid plans if “at least 365 days … have passed since the device was activated on the T-Mobile network.”
“You bought your phone, you should be able to take it to any carrier you want,” FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said when the FCC proposed the rule. “Some providers already work this way. Some don’t. In fact, some have just increased the time their customers have to wait until they can unlock their device 100 percent.”
T-Mobile’s Lockout Policy Is Too Harsh
T-Mobile officials, who also say the FCC does not have the authority to impose the proposed rule, met with FCC officials last week to voice their concerns.
“IT-Mobile has a passion for winning customers for life, and explained how its handset unlock policies benefit our customers,” the carrier said in its post-meeting filing. “Our policies allow us to provide access to high-speed mobile broadband on the national 5G network using free or heavily discounted handsets manufacturer’s suggested retail price. T-Mobile’s unlock policies are transparent, and there is absolutely no evidence of consumer harm from these policies. T-Mobile’s current unlock policies also help T-Mobile combat handset theft and fraud by sophisticated global criminal organizations. “
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