Euronews: OnLive Resurrection Bad News for BT?

BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA), Telefónica UK Ltd. and Wayne Rooney star in today's zip through the EMEA telecom headlines.

The change in ownership of OnLive Inc. , the cloud-based gaming service, could be bad news for BT, according to the BBC. The U.K. incumbent said in a statement that it is "highly likely" that it will have to write off its 2.6 percent stake in OnLive, though it did not reveal how much this was worth. (See OnLive Stays Alive and BT to Invest in OnLive Inc.)

In what could be better news for BT, the Daily Telegraph claims that the carrier is in talks with ITV plc (London: ITV) to allow the terrestrial broadcaster to screen live some of the English Premier League soccer matches that it successfully gained the rights to show on its BT Vision pay-TV service. If the deal comes to pass, it would also represent another loosening of the stranglehold that BSkyB used to have on live Premier League soccer. And ITV viewers could get to see things like this... (See BT Vision Gets Sky Sports.)

As predicted, rival operators have reacted angrily to the news that U.K. regulator Ofcom has effectively given EE a head start on 4G services. In a statement, Telefónica UK (O2) said: "We are hugely disappointed with today's announcement, which will mean the majority of consumers will be excluded from the first wave of digital services. This decision undermines the competitive environment for 4G in the UK." Vodafone UK was similarly unimpressed. (See Euronews: Orange/T-Mob JV Given 4G Head Start and Ofcom Allows EE to Go Early on 4G.)

Swisscom AG (NYSE: SCM) has struck the latest in a series of deals with utility firms in its partnership agreement with EWD to expand the fiber network in the Swiss municipality of Derendingen. All 3,000 homes and businesses in Derendingen will be connected to the high-speed network by the end of 2013.

Exponential-e Ltd. has added the London Metal Exchange to its portfolio of on-net financial exchanges that benefit from its 100GigE core network.

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading