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EU regulators are looking into competition concerns surrounding a joint venture in mobile payments by Everything Everywhere, Vodafone and O2.

The UK's biggest cellular operators said in June that they were creating a clearing house for mobile payments, which would act as an intermediary between advertisers, banks and retailers. However, Three complained to the European Commission that it had been shut out of the deal.

Although the commission did not cite Three's complaint, it did say in its announcement of the investigation late on Friday that there are "potential competition concerns in the nascent markets of mobile … Read more

Apple and Australia are still at odds over the branding of a 4G iPad that doesn't support Australia's 4G networks.

Mediation between Apple and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ended today without an agreement on one sticking point -- the actual name used to sell the iPad. The two parties have been trying to hammer out a compromise since late last month when Australia's consumer commission filed a legal action against Apple over the use of the term 4G.

In its grievance, the ACCC has contended that labeling the tablet "iPad Wi-Fi + 4G" in … Read more

A year ago, hedge fund manager Philip Falcone's LightSquared offered the Federal Communications Commission a huge opportunity to satisfy some of its most lofty wireless broadband goals. Today, the company is facing possible bankruptcy and only the slimmest chance of actually building its network, leaving policy makers in Washington focusing on alternatives.

Earlier this week, Falcone, whose hedge fund Harbinger Capital is the largest stakeholder in LightSquared, told Reuters that bankruptcy protection is one of several options he is considering as he tries to keep the company alive. LightSquared, which has been battling the GPS industry over claims that … Read more

The European Commission today opened two formal antitrust investigations against Motorola Mobilty to determine if the company has breached its promise to offer fair patent licensing.

The Commission is specifically aiming to see if Motorola used its patents to hurt competition in violation of European Union antitrust laws.

The investigation is based largely on complaints from Apple and Microsoft, which have alleged that Motorola's licensing arrangements are not in accordance with FRAND, or "fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory," terms. Motorola had previously pledged to the EU that it would honor such terms.

The EC's probe will also … Read more

Motorola Mobility may find itself the target of an EU investigation over complaints about its patent licensing.

In a recent Washington, D.C., speech, EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia specifically cited patent concerns over Motorola, lumping it in the same regulatory hot seat as Samsung.

"We have recently opened an investigation against Samsung to make sure that the company has not failed to honor the commitments it had taken back in 1998 to make its standard-essential patents for mobile phones available in fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms," Almunia said in the speech. "We have also received similar … Read more

Congressional Republicans are taking aim once again at the Federal Communications Commission.

Earlier this week, House Republicans approved legislation that would put limits on conditions that the FCC could impose on future mergers and wireless spectrum license transfers. The legislation would also require the FCC to justify the costs and benefits of new rules it imposes as well as imposes a "shot clock" when making decisions. The legislation also requires the FCC to publish proposed rules before voting on them.

Senate Democrats oppose the legislation. And President Obama has threatened to veto it if it reaches his desk. … Read more

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has taken a big step in freeing up more wireless spectrum for wireless broadband service providers.

The agency, which is part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, announced on Monday that it has determined that it can repurpose 95MHz of wireless spectrum used by the government for commercial use. Specifics of how and when this spectrum will be cleared, and how much it will cost, are still being developed. But the agency said its preliminary report shows that it is possible.

The addition of this 95MHz of spectrum, which lies in the 1755MHz-to-1850MHz … Read more

The Federal Trade Commission this morning released a wide-ranging report that stops short of endorsing a new "Do Not Track" law.

This morning's 120-page report instead asks Congress to enact a new law that "would provide consumers with access to information about them held by a data broker" such as Lexis Nexis, US Search, or Reed Elsevier subsidiary Choicepoint -- many of which have been the subject of FTC enforcement actions in the last few years.

But when it comes to a Do Not Track law targeting Web companies, which was proposed by legislation introduced last year, … Read more

The FCC kicked off a process that should eventually allow Dish Network to use its satellite spectrum to build a 4G LTE wireless broadband network.

At its March opening meeting, the FCC voted unanimously to begin a rulemaking process aimed at letting Dish use spectrum designated for satellite use to provide a land-based wireless broadband service. Draft regulations described the service and technical rules for implementing the flexible use of the spectrum.

Dish had asked the FCC to grant it a waiver so that it could use 40 MHz of spectrum in the 2 GHz band for 4G. But earlier … Read more