Time running out for cheaper mobile roaming tariffs
An important vote in the European Parliament on the slashing of mobile roaming rates by up to 70 per cent suffered a set-back as it has to be postponed by two weeks, increasing the risk that rates will remain high for another summer reason when roaming...
An important vote in the European Parliament on the slashing of mobile roaming rates by up to 70 per cent suffered a set-back as it has to be postponed by two weeks, increasing the risk that rates will remain high for another summer reason when roaming is mostly used.
Differences between EU member states resulted in the three main institutions of the EU still without consensus on the initiative of the European Commission to decrease significantly the mobile roaming charges.
If a compromise text of the draft law is agreed before the EP's next plenary session on May 21-23, then the process could gather speed and the initiative gets formal approval before EU institutions shut down for the summer holidays.
The European Commission was so optimistic on an agreement and a vote in the EP this week that EU telecom commissioner Viviane Reding said: "For years, the European Parliament, in the name of EU citizens, has asked for lower roaming charges. Now, we have the unique chance to abolish this last border in Europe's internal market once and for all. I trust the European Parliament, together with the Council of Ministers, to make sure that already this summer, European consumers will benefit from substantially lower charges when using their mobile phone abroad".
The European Commission also published a "frequently asked questions" guide sheet to further explain the objectives of roaming tariff reduction initiative. Once again Malta was used as proof of the high tariffs. These are the main points of the guide:
How high are prices?
Still far too high, in the European Commission's view. Using your mobile phone abroad is on average four times higher than national mobile calls, differences that cannot be explained by the costs for operators. For example, an Austrian in Malta could pay -10.00 (Lm4.29) to call home for four minutes. An Irish customer roaming in Malta could pay as much as -11.96 (Lm5.13) for a four-minute call home.
An updated overview of international mobile roaming charges in Europe, with tariffs per country, can be found at the Commission's roaming website: http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/ activities/ roaming/ tariffs/.
Why does the EU see a need to intervene?
"For too long consumer complaints that roaming charges were punishing those who cross a border went unanswered," says Ms Reding. "National regulators felt powerless as roaming, because of its cross-border nature, went beyond their jurisdiction. My repeated call to operators to lower roaming charges voluntarily was not taken seriously. EU leaders at their Brussels summit in March 2006, with the strong support of the European Parliament, had underlined the importance of lowering roaming charges for Europe's competitiveness. That's why we listened and acted."
Why have operators not brought prices down voluntarily?
Although a few market players have begun to reduce prices this has only been under the threat of regulation when Commissioner Reding announced, in February 2006, her intention to regulate. There is no guarantee that without this threat, prices would fall. In addition, not all consumers stand to gain by existing offers.
What do EU citizens think?
In September 2006 a Eurobarometer survey canvassed 24,565 citizens from all across the EU after their summer holidays on how they felt about roaming. The main findings, representative of the EU population as a whole, include:
• 79 per cent of EU citizens surveyed have a mobile phone.
• 44 per cent of mobile phone owners travelled to another EU country in the past year.
• 70 per cent support EU action to lower charges.
• Many mobile phone users use their phones less when abroad as compared to when at home - for 81 per cent this is because of the higher roaming charges.
• 15 per cent switch off their mobile when abroad or simply do not take it with them.
• 59 per cent would use their mobile phone more when abroad, if prices were lower.
• 43 per cent are still confused about the prices for calls whilst abroad.
How does the new EU roaming regulation reduce roaming prices?
To reduce the cost of roaming, wholesale and retail prices will not be able to exceed a certain level to ensure that charges are not unjustifiably higher than those at home.
Below this level, competition should then take place for the most attractive roaming packages.
The roaming regulation will also ensure that information about pricing is clearer for consumers.
How much cheaper could using you mobile phone abroad could become?
For calling home from abroad, consumers will save the most in countries where operators impose very high charges. We expect these savings to be of up to 70 per cent for making calls. For example, an Irish customer making a four-minute call home from Malta would pay not €11.96 as before but a maximum of €2 according to the regulation, while for a Cypriot in Belgium it would drop from €12 to €2.
Differences between EU member states resulted in the three main institutions of the EU still without consensus on the initiative of the European Commission to decrease significantly the mobile roaming charges.
If a compromise text of the draft law is agreed before the EP's next plenary session on May 21-23, then the process could gather speed and the initiative gets formal approval before EU institutions shut down for the summer holidays.
The European Commission was so optimistic on an agreement and a vote in the EP this week that EU telecom commissioner Viviane Reding said: "For years, the European Parliament, in the name of EU citizens, has asked for lower roaming charges. Now, we have the unique chance to abolish this last border in Europe's internal market once and for all. I trust the European Parliament, together with the Council of Ministers, to make sure that already this summer, European consumers will benefit from substantially lower charges when using their mobile phone abroad".
The European Commission also published a "frequently asked questions" guide sheet to further explain the objectives of roaming tariff reduction initiative. Once again Malta was used as proof of the high tariffs. These are the main points of the guide:
How high are prices?
Still far too high, in the European Commission's view. Using your mobile phone abroad is on average four times higher than national mobile calls, differences that cannot be explained by the costs for operators. For example, an Austrian in Malta could pay -10.00 (Lm4.29) to call home for four minutes. An Irish customer roaming in Malta could pay as much as -11.96 (Lm5.13) for a four-minute call home.
An updated overview of international mobile roaming charges in Europe, with tariffs per country, can be found at the Commission's roaming website: http://ec.europa.eu/ information_society/ activities/ roaming/ tariffs/.
Why does the EU see a need to intervene?
"For too long consumer complaints that roaming charges were punishing those who cross a border went unanswered," says Ms Reding. "National regulators felt powerless as roaming, because of its cross-border nature, went beyond their jurisdiction. My repeated call to operators to lower roaming charges voluntarily was not taken seriously. EU leaders at their Brussels summit in March 2006, with the strong support of the European Parliament, had underlined the importance of lowering roaming charges for Europe's competitiveness. That's why we listened and acted."
Why have operators not brought prices down voluntarily?
Although a few market players have begun to reduce prices this has only been under the threat of regulation when Commissioner Reding announced, in February 2006, her intention to regulate. There is no guarantee that without this threat, prices would fall. In addition, not all consumers stand to gain by existing offers.
What do EU citizens think?
In September 2006 a Eurobarometer survey canvassed 24,565 citizens from all across the EU after their summer holidays on how they felt about roaming. The main findings, representative of the EU population as a whole, include:
• 79 per cent of EU citizens surveyed have a mobile phone.
• 44 per cent of mobile phone owners travelled to another EU country in the past year.
• 70 per cent support EU action to lower charges.
• Many mobile phone users use their phones less when abroad as compared to when at home - for 81 per cent this is because of the higher roaming charges.
• 15 per cent switch off their mobile when abroad or simply do not take it with them.
• 59 per cent would use their mobile phone more when abroad, if prices were lower.
• 43 per cent are still confused about the prices for calls whilst abroad.
How does the new EU roaming regulation reduce roaming prices?
To reduce the cost of roaming, wholesale and retail prices will not be able to exceed a certain level to ensure that charges are not unjustifiably higher than those at home.
Below this level, competition should then take place for the most attractive roaming packages.
The roaming regulation will also ensure that information about pricing is clearer for consumers.
How much cheaper could using you mobile phone abroad could become?
For calling home from abroad, consumers will save the most in countries where operators impose very high charges. We expect these savings to be of up to 70 per cent for making calls. For example, an Irish customer making a four-minute call home from Malta would pay not €11.96 as before but a maximum of €2 according to the regulation, while for a Cypriot in Belgium it would drop from €12 to €2.