NEWSONJAPAN
 
The Japanese communications ministry is in the final preparations to urge mobile carriers to remove subscriber identity module locks from mobile phones in the summer 2015, a step to allow users to choose their own service providers, sources said Tuesday.
 
Customers will be able to change mobile carriers but keep their handsets as long as a certain amount of time has passed since purchasing the devices.
 
For example, users will be able to switch carriers for Apple Inc.'s new iPhones, which are expected to be released next autumn.
 
Mobile carriers sell handsets cheaply on condition that users keep the same device for two years.