AT&T's Cricket to tweak device unlocking policy Dec. 7

Cricket, the prepaid brand owned by AT&T Mobility (NYSE: T), said it will change its device unlocking policy starting Dec. 7. The carrier said that, under the new policy, users can unlock their device if they are a Cricket customer in good standing; they have owned and used their Cricket device for at least six months; the device was designed for Cricket's network; and the device was purchased from Cricket or an authorized Cricket distributor.

Cricket's current unlocking policy is largely similar to its new one, although the carrier currently allows users to unlock devices after four months of paid service.

Cricket's unlocking policy is similar to those of other prepaid carriers, which generally sell devices at cost or slightly below cost. For example, T-Mobile US' (NYSE:TMUS) MetroPCS brand requires that customers must have active service on their device for three months before they can unlock the phone. And MVNO TracFone Wireless requires that the device has been in use for 12 months with service before it will unlock the device. Page