A new initiative by the European Union could mean that EU citizens will soon be allowed to travel from one country to the next without incurring hefty roaming charges from their mobile phone providers.
According a report from Reuters, official EU documents have confirmed that the European Parliament’s industry committee may soon succeed in making it illegal for telecoms companies to impose roaming fees for internet and mobile communication. While this measure would only affect customers living in and traveling to EU member countries, it is definitely a step forward. If approved, the policy will come into effect this year, removing roaming fees for mobile internet as well as texting by December.
Currently roaming charges still affect most users around the world, charged extra exorbitant prices for text messages, voice calls, and mobile data every time they step foot outside a coverage area. Customers in the US have already benefitted from slightly loosened roaming restrictions. If the EU industry committee does vote in favor of removing the charges, Europe will be well on its way to ending all roaming data and internet charges by 2016 as had originally been planned.
