“Anyone leaning right will agree that Section 1201 of the DMCA is a terrible piece of legislation,” Khanifar says. Khanna agrees, calling the Library of Congress’s decision on section 1201 “a complete violation of property rights and a really great example of crony capitalism.”

Both say that the decision benefits the bottom lines of major carriers while hurting consumers and raising barriers to entry for smaller wireless companies.

So what does having the White House on board mean? Potentially, not all that much. Edelman’s memo states that the administration “would encourage” mobile providers to take voluntary steps to “ensure that their customers can fully reap the benefits and features they expect when purchasing their devices.” It mentions that the FCC has a role to play. And it says the administration would support “narrow legislative fixes.” But it doesn’t offer much in the way of an action plan.

Khanna, who called the memo a “terrific first step,” nevertheless says that there is more to be done, and that Republicans should take the lead.