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:

Great news for mobile phone users. Ofcom’s new rules preventing unexpected mid-contract price rises came into force last week, which means UK consumers can no longer be surprised by their subscription charge increasing while they’re still locked into a minimum-term deal.

Analyst firm Ovum has published its mobile payment and mobile advertising predictions for this year.

Ovum expects continued technology and service innovation, notably around location-based applications, in the mobile payments space in 2014. However, there will be increasing complexity within the mobile payments ecosystem this year, and on-going challenges around the business model for digital wallet services.

Mark Bridge writes:

HTC experienced a bit of Christmas cheer last week when the threat of a sales injunction against the HTC One mini smartphone and a number of other devices was lifted. Nokia had previously won a patent-related court case against HTC but it seems that a sales ban was deemed too harsh a penalty.

Ashley Gilmour writes:

A quick fact: nearly half of Facebook’s advertising revenue now stems from mobile ads.

That’s right – of the social network’s $1.8 billion (£1.1 billion) generated in the third quarter of 2013, 49% of it was made up of mobile advertising revenue. Last year, the channel represented only 14%.

Mark Bridge writes:

Don't sell the steak – sell the sizzle!  That's the mantra of many salespeople. It's all about emphasising the benefits of a product rather than its features. You don't tell people about the 13 megapixel camera when they ask about the new LG smartphone, you tell them it'll capture the first steps of their precious young nephew in pin-sharp accuracy. Or something like that.

We're looking at the latest mobile industry news and talking to Chris Caudle from the Independent Mobile Phone Dealers Association about his organisation's plans to resolve cashback problems. There's also a quick review of the new Samsung G810 multimedia phone.

This week's edition of 'The Fonecast' visits the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with a special report from Mobile News online editor Mark Sennett. Iain Graham and Mark Bridge take their usual look at the latest mobile industry headlines - and there's a review of the forthcoming LG KF600 dual-screen phone.

This week's edition of 'The Fonecast' looks at all the latest mobile industry headlines, with a special focus on the proposed Microsoft & Yahoo! merger. We talk to Faisal Sheikh about faulty phones and also review the new Garmin nuvifone.

This week's edition of 'The Fonecast' investigates the recent boom in mobile broadband and USB modem sales by talking to the Commercial Product Manager for Hugh Symons Telecom. There's also a review of the Motorola MOTO U9 and the usual look at mobile industry headlines from the past 7 days.

This week the team look at the Nokia N82, talk to Adrian Foot of "The Phone Shop" about 3's connection policy, take a deeper look at unlocking and firmware upgrades, plus bring you the latest news and rumours.