EC Calls For End To Mobile Roaming Charges 173
An anonymous reader writes "European travellers who use their mobile phones abroad could soon see a dramatic reduction in their bills, after the European Commission announced plans to eradicate roaming charges by 2015. In a consultation paper launched yesterday, the EC invited consumers, businesses, telecom operators and public authorities to evaluate the EU's existing roaming rules, and to share their ideas on the best ways to boost competition in roaming services. 'Huge differences between domestic and roaming charges have no place in a true EU Single Market,' said vice-president of the European Commission for the Digital Agenda, Neelie Kroes. 'We need to address the source of current problems, namely a lack of competition, and to find a durable solution. But we are keeping an open mind on exactly what solution would work.'"
"Over there!" (Score:2, Interesting)
European travelers who use their mobile phones abroad could soon see a dramatic reduction in their bills...
I thought the idea behind the creation of the EU was to eliminate the notion of "abroad"?
Portugal and Spain will do it first (Score:3, Interesting)
Portugal and Spain are already in talks to end roaming charges between the two countries: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/08/technology/08roam.html [nytimes.com]
Re:common good (Score:5, Interesting)
Roaming charges are so high because there is no competition in that field. None. You're dependent on your operator - you have no choice. They compete with each other on the local market, not on roaming charges, because - let's be real - some 90% of the telephone users doesn't even use roaming, save for maybe those two weeks vacation a year and then they'd just switch off the phone.
People that have most roaming charges are those that travel for business, and they often don't have to pay their own bills (so they don't care). And companies don't care enough because it's too important to have the phone work in the first place.
Re:Yes please. (Score:5, Interesting)
I was being sarcastic. But in the US, "free market" theocrats will tell you that anything government does is socialism. Because private business does everything better, as an article of faith (disproof has no power over faith). Meanwhile, we could use a healthy dose of actual socialism, instead of the private monopolism that's managed to take over our government and is busy eating what's left of generations of hard-won social democracy.
competition was there at the very beginning (only) (Score:5, Interesting)
I have been on GSM in Europe since the very beginning, a professional traveller.
I perfectly remember roaming rates were widely variable according to the carrier you chose abroad, and soon there were ordered lists that you would enter in your phone to indicate careful preference for carrier X vs Y then Z, for each country. It was somehow painful to enter in the phone, but once only and cool after that.
Then, I *even more perfectly* remember, one day the news unanimously announced, in order to simplify customer experience, all european carriers had agreed onto a clearer and common rate.
Absolutely no one reacted. The rate of course was among the highest (at least, five or ten time higher than the lowest before).
No newspaper claimed this was an illegal arrangement, and neither did the Ms Kroes of the time.
Saying we discover it today is just a shame.
When it was done, it was fully in the open, and no one reacted.
Re:"Over there!" (Score:4, Interesting)