Apple and AT&T were named in a class-action lawsuit last week filed in federal court that alleges that the companies illegally conspired to keep customers in AT&T’s wireless network.
The lawsuit was filed in court in San Francisco and claims that the two companies broke a number of state and federal laws and is asking for punitive along with other damages for more than $2.6 billion.
Lawyers for Paul Holman in Washington state and Californian Lucy Rivello say that Apple and AT&T purposely blocked all modifications to the iPhone. The suit alleges that Apple blocked third-party applications, and disabled unlocked phones with the 1.1.1 update.
Apple says that the unauthorized unlocking programs on the Internet could cause irreparable damage to the iPhone’s software. The Holman-Rivello lawsuit says that the statement of “irreparable damage” to an iPhone by unlocking was not true. “Apple and AT&T agreed to go beyond these [previous] tactics and to take affirmative steps to break the iPhones of consumers who lawfully unlocked the AT&T SIM card or who installed third-party apps,” the suit says.
The suit says that the claims of unlocks doing damage was standard fear, uncertainty and doubt. “Apple had no reason to believe that statement was true, the suit reads. “None of [the antiunlock, antioutside applications changes in 1.1.1] were technically required for the purposes of the upgrade but were designed solely to advance Apple’s unlawful purposes and conduct, and not due to any ‘unavoidable’ conflict or damage resulting from third-party apps or SIM unlock procedures.”
