The European Union has now clamped down on websites offering mobile phone services such as ring-tones and wallpapers, suspecting a breach of consumer rules related to prices, taxes, subscriptions and trader information, with 50% targeting children.

An initial investigation carried out on 558 websites across EU's 27 member states found that 80% (466) of the websites checked need to be further investigated for suspected breaches of EU consumer rules. This wide action is a direct response to hundreds of complaints from consumers that have come to the national authorities, says EU.

The problems found included unclear price information where prices are incomplete, or did not include taxes, or cases where customers are unaware that they are signing up to a subscription. Some of these cases did not include the required contact information about the trader, or included misleading information where key information is hidden in very small print or hard to find on a website. There were also instances where the word "free" was used to mislead consumers into long-term contracts.

According to the EU, far too many people are falling victim to costly surprises from mysterious charges, fees and ring-tone subscriptions, which they learn about only when they see their mobile phone bill.

EU's next step: Companies will be contacted by national authorities and asked to clarify or correct the identified problems. Failure to do so will result in legal action leading to fines or even closure of their websites. In cross-border cases, national authorities will work with colleagues from other EU states and report on the progress in the first half of 2009.