Whoever says petitions are useless and that “the little guy” doesn’t have a voice is wrong. Look no further than the ongoing saga between disgruntled Android enthusiasts and Motorola. Since Motorola started locking down their devices’ bootloaders after the Motorola DROID, Android aficionados have turned protested or turned elsewhere for their Android needs. But thanks to a determined @ibproud and 10,000+ signature petition, Motorola is finally coming to their senses.
Vice President of Mobile Software for Motorola Mobility, Christy Wyatt, gave Mr. Proud a call the other day and detailed how Motorola is committed to listening to their most loyal customers while at the same time providing a safe and secure environment for everyone. Wyatt went on claiming that consumers should begin to see new Motorola hardware with unlocked bootloaders hitting retail shelves as early as Q3/Q4 of this year, and that any currently available phones scheduled to receive an update in the same time frame should also see their bootloaders unlocked.
While we’re understandably excited for Motorola’s change of heart, we’ll remain optimistic yet cautious until we actually see some of these new, liberated devices hit the market.
+1 for the little guy.
