By Dan Satherley
In a move that has surprised many, the US Library of Congress has updated the country's digital copyright laws to explicitly allow smartphones users to bypass any manufacturer restrictions on third party software.
Many phones, such as Apple's iPhone, are only designed to work with one particular network carrier, or only run software from a single, approved source – in the iPhone's case, that would be the App Store.
But through a process known as 'jailbreaking', users can connect to other networks or install unauthorised software. In the past, operating system updates from Apple have rendered these phones inoperable, in a process known as 'bricking'.
Many see this as stifling competition and an intrusion of privacy, but Apple says allowing unauthorised software and connections is a threat to its reputation.
In a statement, the Library of Congress said jailbreaking is not covered by copyright law, "where circumvention is accomplished for the sole purpose of enabling interoperability of… applications, when they have been lawfully obtained".
The statement also contained a similarly-worded section allowing users to alter their phones to connect with unapproved phone networks.
"This ruling is quite important because we're seeing more and more of these kinds of embedded systems," technology lawyer Jason Schultz told SFgate.com.
"It opens the way to more competition and more innovation. It's a groundbreaking ruling from the US Copyright Office, which has not always been as permissive."
PC Mag's Lance Ulanoff says the ruling could see legal action against Apple and other smartphone manufacturers.
"Imagine if all the suddenly legitimised jail-breaking services band together to create a business organisation," he writes. "They could sue Apple and AT&T, claiming the companies are undermining their ability to conduct business."
Despite the ruling, manufacturers would still not be compelled to offer updates to people who'd broken the licence conditions of the original software - at least not yet.
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