The "iPhone Napsters"

Last month, as the iPhone came out, I wrote:

"It's taken a few years, and resistance from the music industry, but iTunes is finally moving away from DRM. It may take a few years but I would like to see Apple similarly move away from the equivalent in the telecom market - the locked SIM card."

But just like Napster and other P2P sites did not wait for Apple, neither are some folks who just don't like locked SIM cards.

NY Times

"Mr. (George) Hotz, a resident of Glen Rock, N.J., published detailed instructions online this week that he says will let iPhone owners abandon AT&T’s service and use their phones on some competing cellular networks."

I had already heard of folks using the Turbo SIM product from a Czech firm, Bladox to use iPhones on European networks. I thought it was interesting their site talked about secure messaging and employee tracking, but not iPhone support as its apps.

Can you blame them? Engagdet reports AT&T's legal team has sprung to life. Napster 2.0.

Let the legal games begin. Apple will eventually get there. Google may beat it, though in the race to open mobile networks. And eventually, even AT&T and Verizon and Sprint will learn to love the huge volumes which will come from the "pay by the drink" model.