The iPhone may be running into trouble in Europe. According to a document obtained by the Financial Times newspaper, the European Commission is questioning carriers in an effort to find out whether Apple is running afoul of antitrust regulations. Apple says it is in full compliance with EC laws.
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Today’s Mobile Minute:
- Apple is coming under pressure in Europe from antitrust regulators. The Financial Times says the European Union is questioning carriers after receiving complaints about Apple’s sales practices. The EC wants to know whether Apple tries to control the way carriers use their marketing budgets and whether Apple tries to dictate the deals carriers can make with Apple’s competitors..
- Another question the EC has for operators: does Apple set a minimum on the number of iPhones they have to buy if they want to carry the phone?
And finally — the EC is looking into Apple’s practice of deciding which European networks are good enough for the iPhone 5. Carriers always test a new phone on their network, but Apple has started testing the iPhone itself and withholding the software updates that turn on LTE until it thinks a network is good enough. - European mobile operators who received the EC’s questionnaire have until June 17 to respond.
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