THE NEWS WRAP: Nokia boss defends Windows Phone 8

Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop has defended his company’s controversial decision to adopt Windows Phone 8 over Android or an internally developed alternative.

”The basic decision we made is that it was not the [operating system] that we would differentiate, and that is not where we will win or lose,” Elop says.

”Where we will win or lose are on ‘differentiators’ that customers could see; that they could experience [something] that really set our devices apart from everybody else.”

ACCC investigates Visa over limiting currency conversion services

Consumer watchdog the ACCC is investigating whether Visa engaged in anti-competitive practices by misusing its market power in Australia to limit the availability of its dynamic currency conversion service.

Dynamic conversion gives foreign credit card holders the option of converting a purchase into their home currency before paying, a service Visa did not roll-out to Australian ATMs.

”The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is concerned that Visa sought to stop the growth of competing dynamic currency conversion services and, as a result, limit the choices available to consumers,” ACCC chairman Rod Sims says.

Overnight

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.73% to 13907.54. The Aussie dollar was steady at US104.32 cents.