Good news for South Koreans who love choice; bad news for LG and Samsung... sort of. For those unaware, South Korea is currently under a rule that requires cellphones that connect to the internet to "use domestic software that standardizes network access." In theory, the regulation makes life easier for local software developers, but in reality, it has enabled locally-based LG and Samsung to combine for around 90% of all handset sales in the nation. Moving forward, however, the Korea Communications Commission intends to modify the barrier (effective next April) so that cellphone operators can use "any type of phone" they choose. We suspect three cheers for competition are in order.

Although Sprint has coughed up some $1 billion over the past few years in order to nix the interference between 2,200 public safety agencies across the US and its iDEN network, it apparently hasn't done enough. Reportedly, the FCC has warned Sprint that it "could lose access to the signal spectrum used by its Nextel- and Boost Mobile-branded wireless services" if it doesn't remedy the problem by June of 2008. Supposedly, Sprint is "working hard" to settle the issue, but it's not wasting any time asking the US Court of Appeals to get involved. The carrier claims that these shut down threats could force it to halt signups of Nextel-branded customers, and furthermore, around three million public-safety workers would purportedly lose service if the FCC did indeed shut down the Nextel network. 'Course, industry analysts are suggesting that regulators wouldn't really go through with shutting it down, but if nothing else, this should light a fire under Sprint to expedite the process.

[Via PhoneScoop]

As the long-running fight for US in-flight calling (or the lack thereof) rages on, it seems that we're finally getting a definitive answer on the matter -- for the time being, of course. According to Telegraph Travel, Les Dorr, of the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), stated that "proposals to lift the ban on in-flight mobiles had caused such an outcry [that] they had been dropped." Furthermore, it was noted that aviation authorities had "ruled out the use of mobile phones on planes for the foreseeable future." Unfortunately, there was little exaggeration beyond that, but it seems that in-flight calling on US flights is on hiatus for the time being.

[Via Textually]