AT&T to Allow Some iPhone Users to Unlock Devices
Starting Sunday, AT&T, once the exclusive provider of Apple’s iPhone in the U.S., will unlock select iPhones to allow the devices to be used with other carriers.
Beginning April 8, qualifying customers with iPhones that are off-contract and who have accounts in good standing will be able to request that AT&T unlock their devices. Once the Apple iPhones are unlocked, any SIM cards can be used, provided that the carrier and iPhone will support each other.
In a statement to CNBC, AT&T said: "The only requirements are that a customer’s account must be in good standing, their device cannot be associated with a current and active term commitment on an AT&T customer account, and they need to have fulfilled their contract term, upgraded under one of our upgrade policies, or paid an early termination fee."
Prior to Sunday, customers who had completed their contracts with AT&T and had iPhones would not have been able to unlock their devices through official channels. This prevented AT&T customers from using their iPhones with other carriers, such as T-Mobile, which supported the smartphones.
