RIP of roaming charges wont be missed (Andrew Duff MEP)

Andrew Duff MEP <info@andrewduffmep.org.uk>

RIP of roaming charges wont be missed

March 28, 2006 10:00 AM

Andrew Duff MEP, Liberal Democrat MEP for the East of England, has welcomed the proposals from the Commission to bring down international roaming charges on the basis of internal market principles.

"Although we are all supposed to be part of a single market where we can work and travel freely, consumers and businesses alike continue to pay ridiculously high prices for using their mobile phones on the Continent.

"Although British mobile customers are not the worst off in Europe, the Commission's investigations have shown that British travellers are still paying excessive prices. Despite warnings from the Commission, within the last six months one UK mobile operator has increased its prices for calling home to the UK from £2.37 to £3.39 - that's an increase of 43%!

"There is no technical explanation for this and I am particularly delighted to see the "home pricing" principle being supported. Such action will fully open up European markets to proper and fair competition as European mobile operators will have to compete with each other on equal terms.

"This is good news for tourists and business travellers alike and I look forward to the full proposal later this summer."

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Although the details of the final proposal are still being drawn up, Commissioner Reding outlined the main elements of this regulation (http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/06/386&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en) :-

• The new EU regulation should in any event address inter-operator tariffs (wholesale prices). The EU regulation would ensure that operators do not charge operators from other countries substantially more than the actual cost.

• To ensure that operator savings at the wholesale level are actually passed on to the consumer, the Commission sees also a need for regulation at the retail level.

• The new EU regulation could in particular eliminate all roaming charges for receiving a call when travelling abroad in the EU.

• In addition, for calls made while travelling abroad in the EU, the new EU regulation could introduce the "home pricing" principle. A mobile customer travelling abroad in the EU would always be charged only the prices that he is used to paying in his country of residence: he would either pay a local tariff when making a local call, regardless of where he is travelling in the EU (e.g. for calling a cab while travelling in Madrid); or a normal international tariff for calls made to EU destinations, regardless of where he is travelling in the EU (e.g. for calling the family back home while on holidays).