Operators in Europe have increased the price of roaming calls coming into the European Union by as much as 163 percent, a move they says research firm Informa Telecoms & Media, is necessary to offset the losses from reduced charges within Europe itself.
The European Union stipulated the introduction of the Eurotariff last June and and its enforcement in September. The Eurotariff effectively caps European roaming charges at 49 eurocents per minutes for calls made abroad and 24 eurocents for calls received abroad, hitting Europe's operators hard. As a result, Informa says operators have significantly jacked up roaming charges outside of Europe to make up for the difference. European regulators don't have any legislative powers to regulate the cost of roaming outside their own territories, but they say they are well aware of the situation and are considering ways of remedying it.
For more about Europe's rising roaming fees:
- read this report from telecoms.com
Related stories:
European roaming charges falling--official. See this European roaming story
EU launches inquiry into mobile data roaming fees. Read this European data roaming report