Bill C-560 (Historical)

Cell Phone Freedom Act

An Act respecting the locking of cellular telephones

This bill was last introduced in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session, which ended in March 2011.

Sponsor

Bruce Hyer  NDP

Introduced as a private member’s bill. (These don’t often become law.)

Status

Outside the Order of Precedence (a private member's bill that hasn't yet won the draw that determines which private member's bills can be debated), as of June 17, 2010
(This bill did not become law.)

Summary

This is from the published bill. The Library of Parliament often publishes better independent summaries.

This enactment provides that a telecommunications service provider is obligated to
(a) inform a consumer who intends to purchase a cellular telephone from the provider whether the network access of the telephone is restricted by a lock;
(b) remove free of charge, after the service contract has expired, any network lock that has been applied to a cellular telephone purchased at a discounted price by a consumer as a condition of entering into a service contract with the provider; and
(c) remove free of charge any network lock that has been applied to a cellular telephone purchased by a consumer from the provider if the consumer does not enter into a service contract of at least six months in duration with the provider or if the consumer pays the total cost of the telephone handset before taking possession of it.

Elsewhere

All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from the Library of Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.

Cell Phone Freedom ActRoutine Proceedings

June 17th, 2010 / 10:25 a.m.


See context

NDP

Bruce Hyer NDP Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-560, An Act respecting the locking of cellular telephones.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to introduce the cell phone freedom act. This bill would take an important step toward providing more consumer choice and to promoting competition in the wireless market. It would strike a healthy balance on the issue of mobile phone network locks.

Most Canadian consumers do not know that their cell phones are locked to work only on the network of the carrier they bought their phone from and that they cannot easily move to a competitor. Unlike most other countries, Canada does not yet regulate these network locks. That diminishes competition. There is much less consumer choice and freedom of movement between service providers, and higher prices and worse services for consumers.

The cell phone freedom act would level the playing field for Canadian cell phone customers. Consumers buying new cell phones in Canada would be informed of any network lock on their phones before sale. Phone companies would have to unlock new phones upon request, without charge, at the end of their service contracts.

Let us stand up for competition and consumers and support the cell phone freedom act.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)