A technique for setting the transmission powers of individual D2D (device-to-device) transmitters using a distributed power control technique is described. Each individual D2D transmitter learns the interference levels that it imposes on an eNB (evolved Node B) and on D2D receivers other than its partner D2D receiver. The D2D transmitter is then able to adjust its transmission power accordingly. Such managing of interference temperature via distributed power control enables the network to maximize its reuse of time-frequency resources.