iPhone delayed in France due to unlocking laws?

Filed under: Cellphones

We're not exactly up on our French, let alone our French telecommunications law, but we're hearing that Apple's supposed launch of the iPhone in that country is being held up by two different regulations that prevent the iPhone from being the locked-down revenue-generating machine Apple wants it to be. The first, a law passed in 1998, requires that carriers unlock any phone upon customer request -- for a fee during the first six months of a contract and for free after that. Notably, all three major French carriers -- including Orange, which was supposed to get the iPhone -- have lost lawsuits challenging this law. The second, which we're slightly less clear on, apparently requires carriers to sell both locked and unlocked phones. Tensions over the regulations have apparently strained the relationship between the companies to the point where Orange spokespeople are saying things like "the risk we're evaluating this week is that Apple crosses France off," but really, who expected Apples and Oranges to mix without someone getting a little bruised?

[via] Engadget