As Richard Wray reports today in the Guardian, the Germans will be able to get an unlocked iPhone, like the French, but British users will not. Vodafone got a court decision in Germany but it's not doing the same thing here:
O2 said yesterday that it was confident its exclusive deal does not contravene UK or EU law. Vodafone said it did not intend a legal challenge in the UK.
O2 is owned by Spain's Telefónica. T-Mobile is owned by Deutsche Telekom. Orange is owned by France Télécom. Vodafone is British. Having different rules in different countries is part of what makes European competition so much fun.
