iRex iLiad e-Reader: Linux's Answer to the Kindle? (informIT)

From the article and the iRex site, it sounds like the iLiad is also locked down when you buy it. The difference compared to the Kindle is that they are offering to unlock the device for private developers (which presumably they could discontinue in the future).

Note that any software you produce on an unlocked device will only be usable by others who have signed up for the program. If you want to sell software that runs on unmodified iLiads, it looks like you need iRex's permission.

So while the device is more hackable than the Kindle at the moment, I wouldn't call it open.