Neelie Kroes
Latest
'Internet tax' sparks huge protests in Hungary
Hungary needs cash, so it seemed like a pretty clever idea to tax that most necessary of utilities: the internet. Unfortunately, while the notion may have gone down well with the nation's accountants, the feeling wasn't shared amongst the general population. That's why tens of thousands of Hungarians spent Saturday night protesting in Budapest. According to the Wall Street Journal, the people also believe that the tax is an attempt to limit access to information and keep everyone watching state-run media. It's not just the local internet fiends who are up in arms, either, since Europe's digital chief, Neelie Kroes, took to Twitter to call the move a "shame on the Hungarian government." For its part, Hungary's government affirmed a pledge to cap the tax at 700 forints (around $2.88) a month, and pointed out that it's the ISPs that are meant to pay, not the households. That said, we wouldn't be surprised if the companies didn't start putting a 701 forint surcharge on the next few bills with maintenance, or something in the description. [Image Credit: Laszlo Beliczay MTI / AP Photo]
Europe's next roaming charge cut comes into force on July 1st
From July, anyone travelling in any of the EU member countries with their smartphone will enjoy a few less numbers on their bill. As part of new roaming caps coming into effect next week, the European Commission has cut the price of data downloads by 55 percent. This means the most you'll pay for a megabyte is 20 cents instead of 45. As promised by the Commission's VP Neelie Kroes, the new price caps will also drop call charges by 21 percent to 19 cents per minute, while receiving calls will be reduced to 5 cents per minute. Text message costs are down 25 percent to 6 cents, but it's the lower cost of data roaming that's the banner announcement, meaning smartphone owners can safely sneak in a quick tweet or Instagram upload while they're making their way across Europe. Some customers, like those on Three in the UK, can bypass charges completely by way of free roaming plans, but for those who find themselves in an unsupported country, the new rates could lighten possible bill shocks in the future.
European commissioner promises single mobile market by 2015
Europe may be enjoying deeper and deeper integration, but that doesn't extend to mobile connectivity; citizens are still whacked with hefty roaming rates. European digital commissioner Neelie Kroes hopes to change this, telling business leaders that she's planning to push through a single mobile telecoms market before she retires in 2015. Speaking at the European Business Summit, she said she had "no intention to retire until [she'd] knocked down all the barriers to a single market," which was her "major priority" for the rest of her term. Hopefully those on that side of the pond will never again have to fork over $8 per day just to check Vine.
EU Digital Commissioner requests better European 4G Rollout
Apple and other device makers keep upping the ante on speed by building support for LTE into their latest devices, but that's of little use to citizens of several countries of the European Union. In many cases, their countries have no 4G networks or operate on frequencies not currently supported by the latest iPhone or iPad. Today, the EU's Commissioner for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes called for EU member nations to support a plan to invest funds in 4G network expansion and improvement. As Kroes told participants in a Brussels conference, "Without faster 4G roll-out, device makers won't take Europe into account when planning their latest smartphones." The BBC reported today that the UK may push for a faster 4G expansion, and many EU member countries seem interested in making this happen as well. The plan is to take about US$64.27 billion from the EU budget and invest in projects to expand the reach and availability of 4G spectrum. This would be a loan, designed to be paid back with interest. However, some countries have already expressed a desire to fund their own expansions rather than dipping into the EU coffers. Especially with the launch this year of the new iPad and iPhone 5, Apple's devices appear to be adding fuel to the debate to expand compatible 4G availability in the European Union.
Orange says it'll bring LTE to all of its EU markets by 2015
Orange made a bold pledge to the future of Europe's "digital economy" yesterday, promising to bring 4G / LTE networks to all EU markets by the year 2015, and reaffirming its commitment to Africa and the Middle East. The France-based carrier outlined its plan during an event in Brussels, where CEO Stéphane Richard and European Commission digital chief Neelie Kroes met to discuss the Commission's "Digital Agenda for Europe." Orange laid out ten commitments in total, including a promise to make FTTH available for 15 million households and 80 percent of all businesses in France by the year 2020. It also vowed to bring 3 million NFC-enabled handsets to the EU this year, and 10 million by the year 2013. Perhaps most salient to Kroes' agenda was Orange's promise to offer customers a privacy "dashboard" by the year 2015, allowing them to more directly control their personal data. In Africa and the Middle East, meanwhile, the company is looking to roll out its 3G network by the year 2015, in the hopes of providing 80 percent of the population with mobile services. For more promises and optimism, check out the full PR after the break.
Intel fined record $1.45 billion in AMD antitrust case
The verdict is in and it's huge. As expected, the EU is fining Intel a record €1.06 billion or $1.45 billion (Billion!) dollars due to violations of antitrust rules in Europe. The record fine surpasses that of the €497 million fine originally levied against Microsoft. The EU ruled that Intel illegally used hidden rebates to squeeze rivals out of the marketplace for CPUs. In a statement issued by European Union Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, the EC said, Intel has harmed millions of European consumers by deliberately acting to keep competitors out of the market for computer chips for many years.Intel was ordered to cease the illegal practices immediately and has three months from the notification of the decision to pay up. Of course, Intel will appeal and this will drag the litigation on for years as did Microsoft. Regardless, we'll bet that AMD, who raised the complaint against Intel back in 2000, will be celebrating come dawn in Sunnyvale.Update: Intel has issued a formal response to the ruling saying that the commission "is wrong and ignores the reality of a highly competitive microprocessor marketplace," and that its practices have caused, "absolutely zero harm to consumers." Oh, and it will <gasp> appeal the decision. Hurrah for corporate lawyers![Via Canada.com]
EU hits Microsoft with $357 million fine
Even though we've resigned ourselves to the fact that Windows Vista isn't coming out until it's good and ready, EU regulators aren't as forgiving as us when it comes to Microsoft playing the delay game, and have hit the software giant with a $357 million fine based on that 2004 anti-competition ruling. What's more, EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes has decided to slap the company with a three million euro-per-day fine starting on July 31st if the document disclosure stipulation of the original decision -- which requires Microsoft to make the Windows source code more accessible to rivals provide technical information to makers of competing server software -- has not been fulfilled. Redmond, for its part, claims that it has been fully cooperating with regulators; general counsel Brad Smith argues that the commission's original demand was too vague, and therefore the issue is not one of compliance but clarity. In the end, Microsoft can complain all day and night about unfair rulings and unclear requirements, but if it wants to continue having unfettered access to the lucrative European market, it seems the company has little choice but to toe the line on this one.
