After being hit hard by a huge number of customer complaints — AT&T will begin unlocking off-contract iPhone devices starting on Sunday, April 8th according to a company statement obtained by 9to5 Mac.
AT&T will unlock your iPhone if your account is in good financial standing, and you have completed your obligated contract term of commitment.
“Beginning Sunday, April 8, we will offer qualifying customers the ability to unlock their AT&T iPhones. 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.”
The news is particularly great for customers who want to travel with their AT&T iPhone overseas without having to pay huge international roaming charges. The move may also serve to boost resale values of phones no longer bound by a contract which Apple currently sells at premium prices.
All qualifying customers need to do is call AT&T support to get their device unlocked. Those customers still on a two year contact will not be able to take advantage of the unlocking policy until your contract is over. But Apple's website alerts people that the unlocked iPhone only works with supported GSM networks, like AT&T in the U.S.
AT&T's big announcement comes a few months ahead of Apple launching their newest iPhone design which most of us are expecting to arrive later this summer. It's almost time to bid farewell to 4S and say hello to iPhone 5.
[9to5 Mac]
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