EU may end all roaming charges

NFH · 20-12-2016, 12:13

Why should it make any difference whether a user is on a one-month SIM-only postpaid contract or prepaid? Why should the fair usage policy be any different?

peterdoo · 21-12-2016, 13:41

To be able to get a contract, one normally has to prove the links to the country of the operator (credit rating, address, bank account...). In most of the cases it is not possible for people not living in a country to get a postpaid contract. So the probability is low that users from other countries would use a SIM in permanent roaming mode. There are still some possibilities to do it, however those should be stopped by the "60 days within 4 months" rule.

On prepaid it is very easy for anybody to get a SIM and use it in permanent roaming. This is something, the free EU-roaming was not designed for. That is why the operators got stronger tools to prevent that situations for prepaid.

The operators can use less strict FUP if they wish, like for example Vodafone Netherlands and Germany and Telekom Germany which currently use almost identical FUP in prepaid EU-roaming as they do at home.

wolfbln · 03-04-2017, 07:51

This will be one of the new catches:
Many telcos here have actually raised rates for roaming outside of the new EU/EEA roaming area. The same is true to "foreign calls". These are IDD calls from the home country of the SIM abroad which remain unregulated under the new law even calling a EU county. Thus, it's going to be cheaper calling another EU country on a foreign roaming EU SIM card than from your home EU country on your home SIM. How ridiculous!

For you in overseas who are not so sure how "Europe" looks like (this includes Europeans often too), I've made a map some time ago for the Wiki:
http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.c...?file=EU-0.png

You see that there are some boarder zones where green meets red. These are quite dangerous. What Switzerland is concerned, the CEO of Vodafone is right. Vodafone UK includes it to their EU zone. But he is the boss of a twentysomething countries with Vodafone networks. Vodafone Germany doesn't include Switzerland. They don't have to, as Switzerland is not part of the deal. Vodafone will be the clear winner of this regulation as they can rely on own resources in most countries. They shouldn't play games like this.

Here is another one: Serbia is bordering 4 EU countries. Within the EU they sell 1GB at €10, roaming in Serbia: "€1.18 per 50 kB" (Peter has linked the rate plan above. Serbia is in Zone 4 for data). If you do your math right, you'll end up with more than €25000 per GB. We still can't be so sure that bill shocks are over. That's why I said: Better look on a map before and for God's sake shut off automatic network selection in border areas.

wolfbln · 15-04-2017, 13:26

Hi. I used the bad weather on Good Friday to write the new article for roaming in the EU/EEA for the Wiki.

Please check it out: http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.c...pean_Union_NEW
And tell me what you think, what to add and what can be left out.
It will replace the old site with the old rules from June.

Writing this I really don't know what to do. Some people have already decided a verdict on the new rules. For some it's the end of all roaming charges, others see no real progress.

I don't want to subscribe to any of these views. We simply need to wait how providers will implement the new rules this summer.

The first new plans or tariffs for the time past June 17 are coming in. They are both encouraging and frustrating. For instance Orange in Belgium will implement the rules without any strings attached, but Orange in neighboring Luxembourg will undercut it by a special domestic offer valid in Luxembourg only. Luxembourg without roaming???

So you see the different operators react diffently according to market. Vodafone has been very groundbreaking so far and announced "roam like at home" for most of their major markets. In Spain they actually include the US to their fee-free zone. But what are they going to do in "cheap" countries like Romania?

Ironically, "roam like at home" is a principle that should bring people in Europe together. But as it looks now, some of the richer countries will usually get it, while users in some poorer countries will still face limitations.

rfranzq · **some thoughts on the article -** 15-04-2017, 21:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by wolfbln

Please check it out: http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.c...pean_Union_NEW
And tell me what you think, what to add and what can be left out.
It will replace the old site with the old rules from June.

I did a quick peruse of the article. I am in USA and don't expect to
travel to Europe in the foreseeable future. So my thoughts might be mostly irrelevant. This looks like a very, very good start.

0. Should I have seen the 'edit' links? I really don't think you want me or anyone else touching this/your work.

1. When you do edit, have you considered marking the changes in some way for content that has changed or is different than what was there previously?
Marking content, but not style fixes. At least until you get to a near final product.

2. Trivia question. Living in California, the EEA has not been something I have paid attention to very much. Is the UK really, actually going to be leaving the EEA also?

3. Since a lot will change or become apparent as time marches on,
perhaps a regular update schedule can be announced and maintained?
Even if it says only that there was no update this week it might help visitors know when to expect changes.

	(#1)
NFH (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 322 Join Date: 11 Apr 2012 Location: London Country:	20-12-2016, 12:13 Why should it make any difference whether a user is on a one-month SIM-only postpaid contract or prepaid? Why should the fair usage policy be any different?

	(#2)
peterdoo (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Fan Posts: 137 Join Date: 20 Sep 2013 Country:	21-12-2016, 13:41 To be able to get a contract, one normally has to prove the links to the country of the operator (credit rating, address, bank account...). In most of the cases it is not possible for people not living in a country to get a postpaid contract. So the probability is low that users from other countries would use a SIM in permanent roaming mode. There are still some possibilities to do it, however those should be stopped by the "60 days within 4 months" rule. On prepaid it is very easy for anybody to get a SIM and use it in permanent roaming. This is something, the free EU-roaming was not designed for. That is why the operators got stronger tools to prevent that situations for prepaid. The operators can use less strict FUP if they wish, like for example Vodafone Netherlands and Germany and Telekom Germany which currently use almost identical FUP in prepaid EU-roaming as they do at home.

	(#3)
wolfbln (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 206 Join Date: 14 Jul 2014 Country:	03-04-2017, 07:51 This will be one of the new catches: Many telcos here have actually raised rates for roaming outside of the new EU/EEA roaming area. The same is true to "foreign calls". These are IDD calls from the home country of the SIM abroad which remain unregulated under the new law even calling a EU county. Thus, it's going to be cheaper calling another EU country on a foreign roaming EU SIM card than from your home EU country on your home SIM. How ridiculous! For you in overseas who are not so sure how "Europe" looks like (this includes Europeans often too), I've made a map some time ago for the Wiki: http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.c...?file=EU-0.png You see that there are some boarder zones where green meets red. These are quite dangerous. What Switzerland is concerned, the CEO of Vodafone is right. Vodafone UK includes it to their EU zone. But he is the boss of a twentysomething countries with Vodafone networks. Vodafone Germany doesn't include Switzerland. They don't have to, as Switzerland is not part of the deal. Vodafone will be the clear winner of this regulation as they can rely on own resources in most countries. They shouldn't play games like this. Here is another one: Serbia is bordering 4 EU countries. Within the EU they sell 1GB at €10, roaming in Serbia: "€1.18 per 50 kB" (Peter has linked the rate plan above. Serbia is in Zone 4 for data). If you do your math right, you'll end up with more than €25000 per GB. We still can't be so sure that bill shocks are over. That's why I said: Better look on a map before and for God's sake shut off automatic network selection in border areas. Last edited by wolfbln; 03-04-2017 at 08:01..

	(#4)
wolfbln (Offline) Senior Member Prepaid Expert Posts: 206 Join Date: 14 Jul 2014 Country:	15-04-2017, 13:26 Hi. I used the bad weather on Good Friday to write the new article for roaming in the EU/EEA for the Wiki. Please check it out: http://prepaid-data-sim-card.wikia.c...pean_Union_NEW And tell me what you think, what to add and what can be left out. It will replace the old site with the old rules from June. Writing this I really don't know what to do. Some people have already decided a verdict on the new rules. For some it's the end of all roaming charges, others see no real progress. I don't want to subscribe to any of these views. We simply need to wait how providers will implement the new rules this summer. The first new plans or tariffs for the time past June 17 are coming in. They are both encouraging and frustrating. For instance Orange in Belgium will implement the rules without any strings attached, but Orange in neighboring Luxembourg will undercut it by a special domestic offer valid in Luxembourg only. Luxembourg without roaming??? So you see the different operators react diffently according to market. Vodafone has been very groundbreaking so far and announced "roam like at home" for most of their major markets. In Spain they actually include the US to their fee-free zone. But what are they going to do in "cheap" countries like Romania? Ironically, "roam like at home" is a principle that should bring people in Europe together. But as it looks now, some of the richer countries will usually get it, while users in some poorer countries will still face limitations.