[XPERIA X10 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] MrHassell:
Firmware is exempt from copyright laws that use the DRM

Rulemaking on Exemptions from Prohibition on Circumvention of Technological Measures that Control Access to Copyrighted Works

Now check it, the good part and THE ruling difference between the PS3 and a mobile phone, also reason why what Sony have done with installing a DRM in the Boot loader to stop modification of the firmware is ILLEGAL.

http://www.copyright.gov/1201/

The Librarian of Congress has announced the classes of works subject to the exemption from the prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. Persons making noninfringing uses of the following six classes of works will not be subject to the prohibition against circumventing access controls (17 U.S.C. § 1201(a)(1)) until the conclusion of the next rulemaking.

(3) Computer programs, in the form of firmware or software, that enable used wireless telephone handsets to connect to a wireless telecommunications network, when circumvention is initiated by the owner of the copy of the computer program solely in order to connect to a wireless telecommunications network and access to the network is authorized by the operator of the network.

I've not heard of a single person trying to do anything even remotely close to breaking any law with using their mobile phone, with a GSM network or 3G provider here at XDA and am appalled to think that some people think it is ok to distribute commercial applications, without consent.

To break the law of a system that implicitly states, any reverse engineering is illegal, is in my mind asking for their butt's to end up in a massive legal case and this has already happened.

This is a phone we are talking about people. Stay on topic and get it right, do your research and you will find that the DRM in the Boot Loader is wrong, not sanctioned or legal, has no benefit to the customer or consumer and does not protect any trade secrets or provide any additional layer of security for software developers at the firmware level or from native Android apk installation files.

Sony has in effect broken the copyright law in America. That does not mean that any single person here at XDA is a criminal or unaware of their rights, this thread appears to demonstrate otherwise but I'm not surprised as most people that visit this developer forum are parrots and do not know how to use a search engine, let alone how it works.

Stop flattering yourselves. Your open source developers on an open source phone and not hackers. You have already been hacked by the people who sold you the phone!

If you don't like it, nobody is saying you have to use it. HTC and other companies offer devices cheaper, provide the functionality you think is so important (Flash tool might prove otherwise if you had enough grey matter to think it through in a rational manor.. it's just a phone!).

Enough - delete the thread. Do your homework before you embarrass yourselves and stop relating real developers to script kiddie douche bags who havn't got enough brains to make their backsides sore. Fail0ver what?

As far as I can see if they had half a brain between them, they would never have been sued by anyone. Ego tripping douches that broke the law! NOT firmware developers, nothing to do with phones.