Paul Meller

The European Commission welcomed a vote in the European Parliament Tuesday that paves the way for a new law governing online provision of financial services.

The lobbying worked. The European Commission has granted an exemption to all online activities from the most contentious element of a controversial law on cross-border disputes in the European Union.

The European Commission will on Friday unveil a watered-down draft of its controversial Rome II law, which will become the reference point within the 15-member European Union (EU) for all cross-border disputes of a noncontractual nature.

An influential European Parliament committee voted to delete e-mail from a list of technologies including fax and SMS messaging that should be protected against unsolicited advertising, the Parliament said Friday.

The European Commission said late Wednesday it has begun legal proceedings against five member states for not liberalizing the local loop in their telecommunication networks.

In a bid to settle its European antitrust case, Microsoft Corp. said Tuesday it will submit an offer to the European Commission to grant rivals access to two of the technical standards needed to make full use of its Windows operating systems.

Companies in Europe are lining up to deny they have Enronitis, and government officials have used allegations of accounting trickery to press for changes in how companies report their financial status.

The European Commission gave Dutch telecommunication company Koninklijke KPN NV regulatory clearance to take sole control over Germany's third largest mobile phone operator E-Plus Mobilfunk GmbH & KG Thursday.