Brussels - The European Union has launched an investigation into U.S. treatment of overseas online gambling operations, with an eye towards possibly launching proceedings against the U.S. at the World Trade Organization, Reuters reported. Several European online gaming services filed complaints with the EU in December, saying that the U.S. is singling out foreign companies for prosecution, while allowing domestic online gambling on horse racing.

Brussels - The European Union has invested $20.5 million in a research project that is exploring the use of peer-to-peer technology for Internet television delivery across Europe. The P2P-Next project is using an open-source BitTorrent client called Tribler, which partners including the BBC and European Broadcasting Union plan to use to stream live TV.

Brussels - The European Union has proposed extending copyright terms for musicians in its member countries from 50 to 95 years, with European Commissioner for internal market and services Charlie McCreevy arguing that, otherwise, some older performers may lose royalties from their works before they are even dead. "If nothing is done, thousands of European performers who recorded in the late 1950s and 1960s will lose all of their airplay royalties over the next 10 years," said McCreevy.

Washington - The European Union has accepted a compensation package the U.S. has offered, in response to its withdrawal from World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements on gambling and betting services. "A bilateral agreement was signed in Geneva, which provides EU service suppliers with new trade opportunities in the U.S. postal and courier, research and development, storage and warehouse sectors," the Commission said. "The U.S. also made concessions in the testing and analysis services sector."