Committee of MPs criticise rural broadband rollout
The Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has said that the government has failed to ensure proper competition by awarding all 26 rural broadband contracts to BT.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport was accused of giving away public money without proper checks.
However, the government and BT have both defended the process and labelled the report as "simply wrong".
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport issued a statement saying: "We put in place a fair commercial process and encouraged different suppliers to bid.
"We are disappointed that the PAC fails to recognise that thousands of rural premises who have never had a decent broadband supply are now getting one, something that is vital for farmers, rural businesses and all those who live outside major cities."
Report condemns Google for links with government and failing to act against piracy
The Commons culture media and sport committee accused Google of offering bad excuses for failing to take action against widespread piracy. The committee claims that piracy is costing the creative industries millions of pounds in lost revenue a year.
A report published today claims that Google was amongst a number of Internet giants in being able to influence coalition policy making. MPs said they had received several complains from across the creative industries about Google’s "perceived power and influence in the government’s inner, policy-making sanctum".
Google, however, insists that it takes down copyright-infringing material as soon as it is brought to its attention.
In-game app fees challenged by OFT
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has made light of its concerns over in-game charges, saying it had seen evidence of "potentially unfair and aggressive commercial practices" after studying 38 popular titles, however the names were not revealed.
The OFT is particularly concerned that children might be more susceptible to such tactics.
New guidelines have been proposed for developers, which apply to both apps and internet browser-based video games.
Some of these guidelines include websites and apps providing upfront information over costs before consumers download it, making it cleat how to contact the business if the user has a complaint and only taking a payment if the account holder provides "informed consent".
