Cable / Telecom News

NDP wants to unlock your cell phone – but it’s not quite that simple

OTTAWA – A new web site called ‘Don’t Lock My Freedom’ is rallying Canadians to rebel against cell phones which are “locked” to the wireless providers from which they were purchased. But it also may serve to shake up the way that wireless companies in Canada do business.The newly-launched site supports a private member’s bill known as the Cellphone Freedom Act introduced last week by NDP MP Bruce Hyer. If passed (private member’s bills are rarely passed, however), the legislation would require telecom companies to ‘unlock’ fully purchased phones free of charge at a customer's request, and unlock subsidized phones...