http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20439105/site/newsweek/

Uniquephones, a Belfast-based cell phone service that boasts having unlocked phones on more than 600 mobile networks, had been planning to sell its software download online beginning this weekend. The fix is supposed to be as simple as plugging an iPhone into your USB port, downloading a software patch and clicking an "unlock" icon.

But Uniquephones's John McLaughlin says that he received a phone call at 3 a.m. Saturday from AT&T lawyers ordering that his company halt their plans. "They said if we did release this, that they would be within their rights to go after us," he says. "These are bullying tactics." He says Uniquephones will delay the release of the software download until he is positive they are on sound legal footing. AT&T declined to comment on Uniquephones or Hotz (who tells NEWSWEEK he had not been contacted by either Apple or AT&T as of Saturday).

Whatever's your problem, John, get it fixed, cause by the time iphonesimfree releases their unlock, nobody will give a shit

Well, depends on your perspective: UniquePhones got about $10M in free publicity for their unlocking services, which work for almost every other phone.

They also got an email list of 500,000, which, according to my very educated guesses, is worth about $5M to the right company.

On the other hand, their Q rating just dropped about 10 million points.

I'm sure uniquephones knew that AT&T would come after them.

Its legal if I unlock my iPhone. But as soon as I charge for the software, then it become illegal. They should release the software for free and accept donations. Easy!!

I don't understand why you go through the hassle of figuring out how to unlock, only to get cold feet at the end. Did no one at that company think to research legal ramifications over the past few months. The are just looking into it now?

Why don't they just threaten apple back and say that if they come after them they will just release the unlock for free.

Ultimately I don't get it. Anyone who is planning to get with ATT&T has done so by now. The majority of the people who want the unlock will never get with ATT&T anyways so what is the real loss to them.

Uniquephones office in Belfast is a "virtual" one - I've just been there!. They are really based in New York,
They have no R&D staff but buy in the software to unlock phones.

Here's a comment from him on July 7th.

"McLaughlin plans to charge customers about US$49.99 for software to unlock iPhones. Even if UniquePhones is not the first to offer unlocking capability, it won't be hard for them to replicate what others have done once the encryption is cracked, he added."

He was obviously hoping that someone else - the Dev team? - would release the unlock and then offer it for sale through his site.
Today he says he was called at 3am from a "Silicon Valley legal firm"
1. How did they get his number?
2. Why doesn't he say that it was Apples lawyers or AT&T's?

I think its BS, something didnt work out in their plans to release the software so they had to come up with some story to cover their asses. Plus, I dont think it's illegal to charge for the unlocking software or process, the same site charges for every other phone they unlock as well - they would have been shut down a long time ago if this was the case.

what Company Answers Their Phone At 3am?????

I still think this is all buzz. Why there is NO video of the apps?
Even the engadget video could be a geohot phone not a software solution.
They are all getting free publicity

Originally Posted by 1town

Whatever's your problem, John, get it fixed, cause by the time iphonesimfree releases their unlock, nobody will give a shit

If the report is true, iphonesimfree should encounter, if they already haven't been contacted yet, the same problem as uniquephones.