CRTC requires phones be sold unlocked!

[chas_m]

Good news for consumers in Canada: the CRTC has decided that after December 1, 2017, all new smartphones shall be sold unlocked, and that customers in good standing can have their smartphones unlocked for free (currently there is a $50 fee for this service).

To quote Gary Ng from iphoneincanada.ca:

Starting December 1, 2017, wireless customers will be able to have their smartphones unlocked free of charge upon request from their provider, while new devices must be provided unlocked. The CRTC has also updated the trial period customers have with smartphone purchases, allowing them to cancel contracts within 15 days and get a full refund on their “near-new condition” device at no extra costs—as long as they have used less than half their monthly usage limits.

New rules also apply to family and shared plans, which state the account holder by default can be the only one to approve for data overage and data roaming charges, beyond the existing $50 and $100 per month caps. Account holders may be able to authorize other family members to authorize other users. These changes will take effect immediately.

Lastly, the CRTC says a wireless plan’s terms, which are defined by voice, text and data services “cannot be unilaterally changed by the service provider during the contract period without the account holder’s express consent,” effective immediately.

A nice gift from Jean-Pierre Blais, the outgoing Chairman of the CRTC. It took quite a while, but Canada has truly leapfrogged the US in consumer-friendliness in the smartphone sector over the course of Blais' term of office. Let's hope his successor is equally consumer friendly!