T-Mobile, AT&T oppose unlocking rule, claim locked phones are good for users

Subsidies, Locking, and Consumer Cost

• Carriers argue that network locks enable heavy handset subsidies, especially on prepaid, and that stricter unlock rules would cut these by 40–70%.
• Many commenters note flagship phone prices look the same across carriers and when bought unlocked from manufacturers, questioning the “cheaper because locked” claim.
• Several argue that subsidies are just baked into higher service prices; unlocking would force more transparent competition on plan cost.
• Others counter that installment-style subsidies help people who cannot pay full price upfront, and removing or weakening them likely raises effective costs for poorer users.

Contracts vs Technical Locks

• Widely held view: if there’s a phone subsidy, a service contract plus early-termination fees is enough; network locks are an extra, unnecessary shackle.
• Multiple anecdotes describe carriers keeping phones locked or making unlocks painful even after devices are fully paid off, reinforcing distrust.
• Some suggest treating phones like other secured loans (liens, collections, credit scores) instead of technical locks.

Impact on Low-Income and Prepaid Users

• One side: locks reduce default risk on small, unsecured electronics loans, allowing lower effective interest than rent-to-own outlets, which can charge extreme markups.
• The other side: US plan pricing is already high; locking just traps vulnerable users in overpriced service and obscures the true total cost.

International Comparisons and Alternatives

• Commenters cite the UK, France, Canada, and EU rules where locking is limited or absent, phones and service are unbundled, and carriers rely on contracts/tabs and collections instead.
• Disagreement over whether such regimes increased prices; some say they did not, others insist higher default risk must be priced in.

User Experiences and Behavior

• Stories of lost trade-ins, misreported locking status, and month-long unlock “escalations” drive hostility to carrier control.
• Others report smooth unlocking and say they like subsidized “free” phones and are fine trading lock-in for discounts.
• Several prefer prepaid/MVNOs, used or midrange phones, and see financing as encouraging overbuying and e-waste.

Regulatory and Policy Views

• Some want strict auto-unlock rules and stronger consumer-protection agencies, viewing carrier arguments as bad-faith and anti-competitive.
• Others emphasize that the FCC proposal targets unlocking timelines, not subsidies themselves, and criticize media framing as oversimplified.

Fraud, Risk, and Technical Issues

• Carriers cite theft and fraud; skeptics note modern activation locks and remote wipe already make stolen phones hard to monetize.
• A few point to the lack of open-source baseband software as an underlying enabler of carrier locking power.