The European Commission is poised to announce it will launch inquiries into premium ringtone websites across Europe after an investigation determined that a vast majority of mobile music storefronts are misleading consumers via unclear fees and other confusing subscriber information. The commission's ringtone effort follows a year-long study into consumer law breaches across more than 500 websites spanning the 27-nation European Union. Commonly-cited retail tactics including signing users to subscriptions under the pretense of selling one-off premium downloads and employing free offers as a front for long-term paid contracts. More than 80 percent of the 500 ringtone websites under the EU's microscope were flagged for further investigation--in Britain alone, 39 of 43 sites warrant a closer regulatory look.

For more on the EU's ringtone investigation:
- read this TimesOnline article [1]

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