PrePaidGSM.net Forum (Archived) - View Single Post - Does Anyone Know the REAL Roaming Costs Incurred by Carriers?

MATHA531 · 28-05-2009, 01:15

Well the concepts are not really new....more than 30 years ago, the bell system controlled much of the local telephone companies in the USA and they claimed they had to use inflated long distance rates to subsidize the ability to provide universal local telephone service. Slowly alternative long distance carriers began to surface threatening AT&T's (the original one) monopolistic practices. Interstate ld rates of AT&T were regulated and the new comers were able to charge what they wanted.

The ultimate result was the break up of the bell system...one of the most reliable systems in the world was broken into composite parts....then AT&T (the surviving company) basically became a ld providers and its off shots such as well one example was what was then czlled NYNEX which consisted of the original bell owned units in NY State (New York Telephone) and New England (New England Telephone)....New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland I believe were in separate system called Bell Atlantic....yada yada yada...slowly but surely, they begain doing guess what...re-uniting so NYNEX joined Bell Atlantic to become Verizon...which they got permission besides offering local service to offer long distance service to compete against...AT&T...well we don't have to go through the whole history other than to say it was the claim of the telcoms that to keep local rates low, long distance rates had to subsidize them.

Of course then cell phones came along...originally local areas and you roamed outside your local area in the USA with astoundingly high rates...also international roaming was pie in the sky...especially since the US carriers were slow to adopt gsm...slowly but surely the whole USA became one large non roaming area and all the rest again is history.

It is this model where there is no roaming within the USA, for the most part, that I believe Ms. Redding is trying to impose on the eu. Of course there is this constant battle, from my readings as I am really a disinterested party, between those who want the eu to become a super one bloc power with one foreign policy, one common currency, one mobile phone roaming rate whatever. Others want the eu to be a loose trade association. This is a battle that has apparently yet to be decided.....

But I agree. We're a long way away from trans continental international free roaming. The dual +1/+44 cards are a bit of a start, don't you think.

	(#7)
MATHA531 (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Specialist Posts: 869 Join Date: 15 Oct 2004 Country:	28-05-2009, 01:15 Well the concepts are not really new....more than 30 years ago, the bell system controlled much of the local telephone companies in the USA and they claimed they had to use inflated long distance rates to subsidize the ability to provide universal local telephone service. Slowly alternative long distance carriers began to surface threatening AT&T's (the original one) monopolistic practices. Interstate ld rates of AT&T were regulated and the new comers were able to charge what they wanted. The ultimate result was the break up of the bell system...one of the most reliable systems in the world was broken into composite parts....then AT&T (the surviving company) basically became a ld providers and its off shots such as well one example was what was then czlled NYNEX which consisted of the original bell owned units in NY State (New York Telephone) and New England (New England Telephone)....New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland I believe were in separate system called Bell Atlantic....yada yada yada...slowly but surely, they begain doing guess what...re-uniting so NYNEX joined Bell Atlantic to become Verizon...which they got permission besides offering local service to offer long distance service to compete against...AT&T...well we don't have to go through the whole history other than to say it was the claim of the telcoms that to keep local rates low, long distance rates had to subsidize them. Of course then cell phones came along...originally local areas and you roamed outside your local area in the USA with astoundingly high rates...also international roaming was pie in the sky...especially since the US carriers were slow to adopt gsm...slowly but surely the whole USA became one large non roaming area and all the rest again is history. It is this model where there is no roaming within the USA, for the most part, that I believe Ms. Redding is trying to impose on the eu. Of course there is this constant battle, from my readings as I am really a disinterested party, between those who want the eu to become a super one bloc power with one foreign policy, one common currency, one mobile phone roaming rate whatever. Others want the eu to be a loose trade association. This is a battle that has apparently yet to be decided..... But I agree. We're a long way away from trans continental international free roaming. The dual +1/+44 cards are a bit of a start, don't you think.