Tourist roaming bills cut by 36%

TOURISTS within Europe can use their smartphones without fear of an outrageous bill waiting at home starting from this year's summer holidays, as the European Union is cutting maximum mobile data roaming rates by 36% next week.

From Monday, new rules mean that roaming downloads will now cost 45 centimes per megabyte, outgoing phone calls will cost 24 centimes a minute plus VAT (down 17% on last year), receiving calls will cost seven centimes a minute (down 13%) and sending a text message will cost eight centimes plus VAT.

The changes were demanded by the European Commission and mean that mobile data roaming within the EU in 2013 is up to 91% cheaper than it was in 2007.

However, the changes affect calls made outside the user’s home country and, for French mobiles, do not affect calls from France to other European countries. These are covered in the normal phone tariff.

European Commission vice president Neelie Kroes said it will be "cheaper to use maps, watch videos, check emails and update social networks while travelling," adding that the move was part of a drive to cut prices as an effort "to be relevant to people's lives".

In money terms, the changes mean that checking a map five times – with each map taking 1Mb of download – will cost a maximum of €2.25 from Monday... as compared to €3.50 today at 70 centimes/Mb.

The Commission said these were maximum charges and added: "Operators are free to offer cheaper rates, and some have already begun to remove roaming premiums altogether for voice and SMS.”
© AFP/Connexion
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