The mobile virtual network operator will be an important factor in the growth of 4G connections, according to ABI Research.

It's predicted there'll be 103 million 4G subscribers connected via MVNOs by 2016, up from just 3.8 million worldwide last year. Around a third of these 103 million subscribers will be from China and Japan.

The Communications Consumer Panel, an independent group of experts established to provide advice to Ofcom, have asked the regulator to use the forthcoming UK 4G spectrum auction as an opportunity to increase mobile coverage.

It's proposing that coverage obligations are set at national or regional levels across the UK. Alternatively, it would like to see money from the spectrum auction used to pay operators who'd then provide cross-network roaming for these areas.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology, Europe's largest engineering and technology organisation, is calling on the UK government to take radical steps and change its plans for 4G mobile phone spectrum allocation. Without these changes, the IET says regulation will continue to be a serious barrier to growth.

It wants the government to define a 'national ambition' for mobile infrastructure to support UK competitiveness, investment and innovation.

In this week's podcast we discuss Apple's legal settlement with Nokia, 4G plans for the UK, Everything Everywhere's new shops, HP's new tablet and the rest of the UK's industry news headlines.

O2 has publicised its response to Ofcom's proposals for auctioning the UK radio spectrum that'll be used for 4G LTE mobile services. Ofcom is proposing 'caps' to prevent any single bidder gaining a large amount of spectrum, along with 'floors' of minimum ownership.

In a statement, O2 said "we believe that the proposed spectrum floors are a state aid and are therefore illegal under EU law."