Roam if you want to
There have been many stories in recent years of consumers confronted with huge mobile phone bills as a result of accessing the web using a phone connection while abroad. Mobile phone companies are charging much higher rates for data when roaming and many end-users have been unaware of the cost implications of using mobile broadband abroad.
Starting today, operators are obliged to agree a specified bill threshold, after which the customer will be automatically cut-off from their data connection while roaming following a warning. The default limit is €50 and the warning comes when 80 percent of the limit is reached. This measure will be opt-in until 1 July, but will be the default thereafter.
"Protection against data roaming bill shocks is a useful step towards building customers' confidence to use mobile networks to surf the Internet when travelling around Europe. Such confidence is essential if people and businesses are to use the Internet to its full potential," said Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes.
Hopefully another of the EU's new set of rules for telecoms providers will make this measure less necessary. Operators can now charge each other a maximum of €1 per MB of data downloaded and it's set to fall further over the next two years.
You can see all the details of the EU telco rules and, of course, a healthy dollop of self-promotion, here.
