Apple Declares Jailbreaking iPhone is Illegal

Terry Olaes

Terry Olaes

I Used to be the [H] News Guy
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Nov 27, 2006
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In a move that shouldn’t surprise anyone, Apple has notified the US Copyright Office during the triennial exemption request hearings that states jailbreaking an iPhone is copyright infringement and a DMCA violation. As you can expect, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has something to say about that.

The Copyright Office comes together every three years to hear cases for exemption requests, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed an exemption request seeking exemption for consumers looking to jailbreak the iPhone so it can use independent software not sold through the App Store.
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Sigh...

I hope the DCMA gets caned soon. What a POS!

If I want to mess with my own stuff, I should be able to. What if MIT wanted to make it talk to the space station?

I'm sure they would be all over supporting that!
 
What if:
Sony, builds a TV, decides it should only be used with a certain cable provider, and locks the TV to that certain cable provider. I hack my TV, an appliance that I own, to function with any cable provider I want.
Does Sony really have the right to complain? If they don't then how does Apple.
 
This reminds me of years ago when sony threw a hissy fit because some guy was hacking his robot dogs (forgot what they're called, but i'm sure most ppl know what i'm talking about) to make them do all kinds of funny dances & stuff.

If i recall correctly, they did get him to agree to remove the 'how-to' info. off his website, but in terms of his right to modify what he has purchased the courts told sony to piss off.

This control grab behavior has concerned me for a long time. Many commercial grade software app. makers (think Autodesk) have had this attitude for years. If you want to see where this is headed if they get their way, go look up how Autodesk extorts their customers into purchasing uneccessary upgrades they don't need, for software they technically do not own........even though they paid for it. :mad:

Corp.'s will come back for more and more control until they get a foot put down on them. It's just what they do.
 
dnottis said:
I find the true crime to be selling a phone for $600.
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They would not be selling for $600.00 if people didn't buy them....blame the people who have to have them for the high price, not Apple.

As long as sales are strong, they have no reason to drop the price.
 
Just my opinion: Apple can do whatever the hell they want with their iPhone - it's why I don't own one. It is amazing to me how Apple has established themselves as being the good guys while Microsoft is vilified as the evil empire. Of course, every corporation just wants to soak consumers for as much money as they can get without regard to what is fair - so I guess they are all assholes.
 
I think we all knew that it's illegal, it's just that nobody cares. I can understand wanting to control your product, but some of the restrictions on iPhone/iPod use just don't make sense for people who want their hardware to be open and customizable.
 
I don't care for your products and your quicktime sucks beans. I will never buy an Apple product due to fact they are locked to I-Tunes. Anyone who forces you to use a subscription service can screw off.
 
I declare selling iPhones at Walmart a crime as well. Won't someone please think of the hipsters?!
:rolleyes:
 
-=Antimatter=- said:
I think we all knew that it's illegal, it's just that nobody cares. I can understand wanting to control your product, but some of the restrictions on iPhone/iPod use just don't make sense for people who want their hardware to be open and customizable.
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No one knows its illegal, because it isn't
 
bholstege said:
No one knows its illegal, because it isn't
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True, but Apple is trying to set up a situation where it is illegal, or at least something they can use to sue various people and try to limit the number of properly functioning, unlocked phones on the market.
 
Violation of DMCA? People aren't circumventing COPY protection technology. This isn't about piracy, so the DMCA shouldn't apply. People are simply modifying their phone, so I'd wager the worst Apple can do is void their warranty.
 
Reason why I have an nokia and not an apple phone. I don't own a single apple product due to their restrictions that impose on hardware.
 
This shit is getting old.

I believe a company has a right to protect its coprights and its products, but the line has to be drawn somewhere.

Apple is just short of telling consumers when and where(if they don't already) they can use the product they paid for.
The line has gotta be drawn someone. Currently apple is abusing the law for their profit.

Can you imagine if some manager at Microsoft woke up tomorrow morning and decided windows could only be run on computers Microsoft approved and those computers would cost $2k+ for a low end machine.

People would be going absolutely apeshit.
 
Terry Olaes said:
In a move that shouldn’t surprise anyone, Apple has notified the US Copyright Office during the triennial exemption request hearings that states jailbreaking an iPhone is copyright infringement and a DMCA violation. As you can expect, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has something to say about that.
Click to expand...

I read about this yesterday. When I've owned two iPaqs and a Palm Pilot.

The iPaq was great because I could download all kinds of mods. I skinned the interface, added my own customer shortcut buttons, status monitors, clocks, themes. And I downloaded a ton of free apps, games, bought one or two here.

It was all fun and games until Microsoft and Hewlett Packard came out and announced that modding your iPaq was illegal, and putting software on it that was free, or not from Microsoft's or HP's store was also illegal. They threatened to pursue legal action against me, too....

LOL. See how ridiculous that sounds?? I can't imagine ever having limitations on my iPaq. I put all kinds of software, mods and CRAP on my iPaq. And guess what?? They still honor the warranty, too. I wore off the rubber side grips. They sent me new side grips. I wore out the battery, they sent me a new battery. They didn't say "because you modified the OS, hacked the interface, w/e we're not covering you."

Apple really pisses me off sometimes. I think the iPod touch is amazing, and I have yet to see a device that competes with it price/function-wise. I think Apple makes some good, solid hardware, but boy do they act like ridiculous boneheads sometimes. I suppose it's just because they want all the money from their App store. I can certainly understand GREED, but I don't agree with it. I have a 2 year old white Macbook. Been a great computer and a great OS for school, but crap like this seriously reduces the chances I'll ever buy another Mac again.
 
Another joyous day of not owning an iphone. I will not spend a dollar on an Apple product in my life if I can help it. Unfortunately, we have to use Macs at work. They are another example of over priced pieces of shit.
 
IMO, it'd be different if they were highly discounted like other phones that are locked into a provider, but when you spend that kind of money for the stupid thing I think you should be able to take it to any provider you wish.
 
mynamehere said:
IMO, it'd be different if they were highly discounted like other phones that are locked into a provider, but when you spend that kind of money for the stupid thing I think you should be able to take it to any provider you wish.
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As far as Apple is concerned the i-phone is highly discounted.
 
GORANKAR said:
As far as Apple is concerned the i-phone is highly discounted.
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They could give it away for FREE with the 2 year contract and it is still a ripoff because of the required $100/month minimum plan.

I have a couple of friends. They are married. No kids yet, but they each have their own iPhone with AT&T. $100 PER LINE!!!! REQUIRED!!! How can they pay $200 just for phones? Yeah, I actually like the iPhone, but AT&T is shoddy at best in our region. That is just something that completely boggles my mind. :eek:
 
So, since when can Apple declare laws? This is almost as bad as the RIAA/MPAA policing the web.
 
SirKronan said:
They could give it away for FREE with the 2 year contract and it is still a ripoff because of the required $100/month minimum plan.

I have a couple of friends. They are married. No kids yet, but they each have their own iPhone with AT&T. $100 PER LINE!!!! REQUIRED!!! How can they pay $200 just for phones? Yeah, I actually like the iPhone, but AT&T is shoddy at best in our region. That is just something that completely boggles my mind. :eek:
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You'd have to have had your head in the sand but haven't you heard about the financial mess occuring? Your example is not terribly different from all the other consumers acting like irresponsible morons.
 
SirKronan said:
They could give it away for FREE with the 2 year contract and it is still a ripoff because of the required $100/month minimum plan.

I have a couple of friends. They are married. No kids yet, but they each have their own iPhone with AT&T. $100 PER LINE!!!! REQUIRED!!! How can they pay $200 just for phones? Yeah, I actually like the iPhone, but AT&T is shoddy at best in our region. That is just something that completely boggles my mind. :eek:
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Make sure you get your facts straight. I pay less on my AT&T plan than I did with Verizon choosing the same options. Why? Here is a hint, internet prices, verizon is one of the highest in the industry still.

I pay about 200 a month for my two phones.... expensive? maybe? Needed? yes.


Also, while Verizon has undisputably one of the best networks out othere, I found that it does not function for me at work and at home I had shoddy reception... while it worked great for my 25 mile commute each way, I needed it to function at work also.... where AT&T does.


Compare Apples to Apples and you will see that the iPhone is not only cheap in contrast (Verizon wants about $350-400 for a good PDA phone) vs $199 for the iphone... while a lot is a give and take, consider the prices to be one of them.
 
This isn't about copyright or control of their product, it's about losing profit from the sale of their "approved" apps in the store.

I jailbreaked my iphone last week and love the freedom I now have with the device I own. I can now play the original DOOM on the worst interface on the planet.
 
GORANKAR said:
What if:
Sony, builds a TV, decides it should only be used with a certain cable provider, and locks the TV to that certain cable provider. I hack my TV, an appliance that I own, to function with any cable provider I want.
Does Sony really have the right to complain? If they don't then how does Apple.
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Christ, don't give them any ideas.
 
Ockie said:
Make sure you get your facts straight. I pay less on my AT&T plan than I did with Verizon choosing the same options. Why? Here is a hint, internet prices, verizon is one of the highest in the industry still.

I pay about 200 a month for my two phones.... expensive? maybe? Needed? yes.


Also, while Verizon has undisputably one of the best networks out othere, I found that it does not function for me at work and at home I had shoddy reception... while it worked great for my 25 mile commute each way, I needed it to function at work also.... where AT&T does.


Compare Apples to Apples and you will see that the iPhone is not only cheap in contrast (Verizon wants about $350-400 for a good PDA phone) vs $199 for the iphone... while a lot is a give and take, consider the prices to be one of them.
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Who needs to PAY FOR DATE on a phone that has WI FI??? To require that is CRAP. Plain and simple. Requiring a data plan on a phone that has wi fi is just plain greedy and dishonest. I think the iPhone is a great device and $200 is a fine discounted price for a good smartphone - but YOU should choose the plan, not them.
 
I have Sprint. I have an HTC Diamond Touch that has has completely custom OS roms. I have free programs. The phone was 199.99 after some mail in rebates, contract renewal and turning in my old phones.

I also pay 49.99 a month for unlimited data, 1500 shared minutes between my 2 phones, no roaming, unlimited nights and weekends, unlimited mobile to mobile, some text messaging on there too that I don't really use.

Whoever pays 100+ bucks a month per line, per phone is insane.
 
What the fuck are you idiots going on about $200 for two phones?

I pay $100 total for 2 phones, 1 iphone with unlimited texting, unlimited (5gig) internet, and 1 samsung a737, no services attached.

700 minutes per month, family plan.

If I had two Iphones, on the 700 minutes plan I'd pay another $30 for the unlimited data rate.

Having two rates is idiotic, but seriously, $130 is NOT $200. You can easily boost your phone pay amount in any way, you don't need unlimited minutes.
 
TheCAD said:
Can you imagine if some manager at Microsoft woke up tomorrow morning and decided windows could only be run on computers Microsoft approved and those computers would cost $2k+ for a low end machine.
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They already patented that idea on Christmas Day. Performance for $, want more performance you pay us more $$. :eek:
 
SilverSliver said:
Whoever pays 100+ bucks a month per line, per phone is insane.
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I don't think I'm insane. :confused:

I use about 1500-2000 minutes a month, get twice the speed of DSL with PDA Net, and all my mail can be gotten anywhere and anytime. :D
 
This is Apple's way of complaining that they're not profiting from every single app out there created by someone else.

-This would be like saying it is illegal to modify a car or put upgrades in it.
-To modify an MP3 player to run apps or to play 'unlocked' music.
-To modify a computer component to run faster or cooler.

But like others have said, Apple can do what they want, no one will care.
 
SirKronan said:
Who needs to PAY FOR DATE on a phone that has WI FI??? To require that is CRAP. Plain and simple. Requiring a data plan on a phone that has wi fi is just plain greedy and dishonest. I think the iPhone is a great device and $200 is a fine discounted price for a good smartphone - but YOU should choose the plan, not them.
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This is true with most/if not all companies, I don't know why you singled out the wifi feature as iphone exclusive.
 
BigBeef said:
This is Apple's way of complaining that they're not profiting from every single app out there created by someone else.

-This would be like saying it is illegal to modify a car or put upgrades in it.
-To modify an MP3 player to run apps or to play 'unlocked' music.
-To modify a computer component to run faster or cooler.

But like others have said, Apple can do what they want, no one will care.
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Some profits are made not from the hardware, but rather the services. If everyone bought a console for example and pirated games, do you think that they would make back their money? They make their money from the services and other features, not the hardware.

Also, all cars have aftermarket limitations, it typically ends after 10 years, so yes cars have it also.
 
I'm a PC.

And I'm a Mac that DOES EXACTLY WHAT THE COMPANY TELLS ME TO DO LIKE A GOOD LITTLE CONSUMER.


Lulz.
 
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