The European Commission is considering forcing companies selling items online to have bricks and mortar shops for customers to visit as well. This comes under guidelines called the Vertical Restraints Regulations (VRR) and comes under competition law.

Frankly this is nothing less than an assault on the customer’s right to choose. Found a better price for something on eBay? Hard luck, it doesn’t have actual premises so it can no longer operate. Got a bargain on Amazon? Tough – it doesn’t have a shop you can visit so it could be ruled unlawful.

On Sunday 31 January a number of pubs in the UK showed a football match, Arsenal v. Manchester United. Nothing special about that– but the regulars were handed glasses and watched the whole thing in 3D.

Sky TV will follow this by launching its 3D channel in April so everyone can have a look. Everyone with a new 3D television, that is.

British Government body Consumer Direct has published its annual list of the top ten complaints it’s received. At the head is poor quality used cars. Second is dodgy TVs but third, with 22,172 complaints, is mobile phone service contracts.

Not, you’ll note, phones themselves, but the contracts. The ones designed to lock you in for 18 months or two years.