North America

US mobile operator Verizon Wireless put rivals Sprint and T-Mobile on notice last week with the release of an HTC smartphone that is cheaper and more flexible than devices from its two competitors, notes PC Mag.

The Financial Times (FT) reports this morning that Vodafone is considering an offer to buy T-Mobile UK in a move that would transform the UK mobile market.

Speculation around the future of Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile UK unit is rife this week as various press reports have linked almost all of its UK rivals to a possible takeover bid.

Deutsche Telekom is reportedly keen to make an 'asset swap' deal as part of its rumoured divestiture of its UK unit, T-Mobile UK, reports the Financial Times.

Reports this week state that the US Department of Justice (DoJ) has begun looking into whether large domestic operators are purposely making it hard for smaller rivals to compete.

Taiwanese handset-vendor HTC has reported better-than-expected second-quarter net profit due in part to the success to its early Android-based smartphones, reports Reuters.

eWeek reports that Microsoft Bing has become the default search tool on Verizon-powered mobile devices as part of a five-year deal.