UK telecoms regulator Ofcom wants to ban inflation-related rises in phone and broadband contracts. Instead, it says any potential mid-contract price rises should be set out in pounds and pence.

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.

Mark Bridge writes:

James Rosewell shows me a colourful roll of paper that's the width of an iPhone but well over three metres long. When I look closer, I can see it's a printed copy of the Wall Street Journal's mobile website. That's a lot of scrolling to do... and a pretty unfriendly user experience for anyone reading the news online. Why does it work so badly?

Mark Bridge writes:

In a way, it’s hard to believe that the first Apple iPhone wasn’t seen in public until this day seven years ago. It - and the trend towards one-piece smartphones with hardly any buttons - seems to have been with us for much longer.

Mark Bridge writes:

There’s plenty of snow disrupting the UK – but, thanks to the mobile telecoms industry, thousands upon thousands of people are able to work from home. We’re all feeling pretty pleased with ourselves right now, aren’t we?

Pedestrians may have been skating down pavements but a different kind of trouble on the high street dominated much of last week as music, DVD and occasional mobile phone retailer HMV went into administration.

Mark Bridge writes:

I’ve recently been talking to Theo Neumann from Wolverhampton City Radio about the top ten gadgets that are likely to hit the headlines in 2013. The most desirable, most likely to be talked about, most exciting… that kind of thing. Although my top 10 list isn’t entirely mobile-related, I thought it was worth sharing here.

Mark Bridge writes:

The new iPad has a better screen. Higher-resolution. Clearer. High Definition. Just what everyone wants, right?

Apparently not.

Iain, James and Mark look at the week's mobile industry news, from texting lifeguards to Windows Phone 7. In addition, James talks to Eran Yaniv from Perfecto Mobile about testing mobile software, services and websites without owning a single handset.

This week's mobile industry headlines include changes at the top in Nokia, reorganisation at Vodafone and more power for 3G transmitters. There's also a report from Qualcomm's IQ2010 event in London.

James Rosewell reports from day one of Over The Air 2010, a unique event for mobile developers held at Imperial College London. In this podcast, James talks to Matthew Cashmore, Daniel Appelquist, Jo Rabin, Helen Keegan and Anthony Hicks.

In this specal podcast, James Rosewell talks to Steve Dobson about today's "Definition of Mobile" event in Leeds. Steve explains how businesses should be making the most of mobile technology - and also warns about mistakes to avoid.

A special broadcast from Qualcomm's IQ2010, featuring the keynote speech from CEO Dr Paul Jacobs.