EU may end all roaming charges

[Marschel]

I think the big operators like Deutsche Telekom (T-Mobile), Orange and Vodafone should act like "3" with their RoamLikeHome.

[wco81]

NY Times article says there's momentum for adopting this new proposal to end roaming fees:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/06/te...tum.html?_r=1&

But it occurs to me that even if this law is adopted, it may not apply to prepaid products that travelers would buy.

It could be like those deals which require payments from a local bank account, or maybe postpaid accounts.

So it may benefit EU residents but not necessarily travelers from outside the EU who visit.

[NFH]

Originally Posted by wco81

But it occurs to me that even if this law is adopted, it may not apply to prepaid products that travelers would buy.

In some EU countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, prepaid is the norm and contracts are the exception. Therefore it is very unlikely that the European Commission would exempt prepaid accounts from the legislation.

[tux]

It would be anyway a nonsense

I'm waiting for the 11th Semptember for the new proposal for a single TLC market. It's going to be a "hot" autumn

[wco81]

I just meant in the sense that you have no-contract plans like Free in France that requires a bank account.

Offers way more than prepaid products in that country.

[smudge]

EU Commission unveils new plan to cap cost of phone calls:

(Reuters) - The cost of cross border phone calls in Europe will be capped to the price of a long-distance domestic call, the European Commission proposed on Wednesday (11 Sept 2013), announcing plans to further harmonize the EU's telecoms market.

The proposal, which also suggests capping the price for users taking calls on a mobile while travelling in Europe, suggests granting the EU veto power over sales of mobile spectrum by member countries.

"The European Commission says no to roaming premiums, yes to net neutrality, yes to investment, yes to new jobs," EU telecoms chief Neelie Kroes said in a statement.

The reform is designed to encourage telecoms companies to invest more in broadband network infrastructure, ensuring that European citizens can download data from the Internet as quickly as their counterparts in Asia and North America.

The Commission also hopes limiting telephony costs in the bloc where international mobile calls vary from 35 cents to 1.19 euros per minute will benefit businesses. It said the projected 0.5 percent fall in operators' revenues will be offset by more usage.

It may, however, struggle to get the blessing it requires from all 28 EU governments and the European Parliament for it to become law.

While they would likely back lower call prices, the proposed veto could make it harder for governments to tap an important source of revenue.

The proposal includes better coordination of the sales of mobile spectrum by EU countries and veto power by the Commission. It would allow operators to charge more for carrying traffic at higher speeds.

The Commission also said it would seek feedback on the possibility of creating a single EU regulator for the industry, a sensitive issue for countries wary of losing power to the European Union's executive.

EU Commission unveils plan to cap cost of phone calls | Reuters

[smudge]

Commission adopts regulatory proposals for a Connected Continent:

EUROPA - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - Commission adopts regulatory proposals for a Connected Continent

[DRNewcomb]

Originally Posted by ronwi

The big difference with the US is that for the most part the cell phone companies are national - a California user travelling 2500 miles to New York is still utilizing the same carrier.

Actually, the EU countries beat the US to nationwide carriers by more than 10 years. It's just that there is not quite yet a United States of Europe. What they are talking about is the equivalent of traveling from Toronto to San José, Costa Rica with no roaming.

[wco81]

So how typically do the EU member nations ratify the proposals of this commission?

And do the carriers lobby their home nations to resist or reject this proposal?

[NFH]

Originally Posted by DRNewcomb

Actually, the EU countries beat the US to nationwide carriers by more than 10 years. It's just that there is not quite yet a United States of Europe. What they are talking about is the equivalent of traveling from Toronto to San José, Costa Rica with no roaming.

EU countries have never had regional networks. In some cases, new networks have had coverage confined to a particular region within a country, but this has only been temporary while they rolled out their network nationally.

There is no company which yet has coverage throughout the whole of the EU. The most likely to achieve this are:

• Vodafone - British company
• Orange - owned by France Télécom but originally a British brand
• O2 - owned by Telefonica (Spanish incumbent ex-monopoly) but originally a British brand
• T-Mobile - part of Deutsche Telekom

Some other companies which already cover several EU countries are:

• 3 - Hong Kong company
• TeliaSonera - Swedish company