A little more than a year since being proposed by the European Commission, and following heated debate at the European Parliament’s committee stage, new 70 per cent pan-European mobile roaming rate cuts are to become effective on Saturday.

Roaming refers to placing or receiving a mobile telephone call while abroad, and Malta has been shown time and time again to have among the highest charges for roaming in the EU.

In a recent Eurobarometer study, Maltese were found to have the strongest objections to stiff roaming charges in the EU with 78 per cent of Maltese saying they would use their mobile phone more when abroad if the cost of roaming were to be lowered.

The imposition of roaming charge cuts on European mobile companies were first floated by the EC just over a year ago and were approved overwhelmingly by the European Parliament in May. The legislative process, the EC pointed out yesterday, had been undertaken in record time.

Now the cuts have been made, national regulatory authorities – in Malta’s case the Malta Communications Authority – together with the Commission are to closely monitor the transition to the new roaming rules to ensure no abuses take place.

“At last Europeans can breathe a sigh of relief as the EU Roaming Regulation finally becomes binding law across all member states. We hope we’ve now seen the last of excessive roaming charges. I note with satisfaction that some operators are offering the new Eurotariff already as of 1 July,” commented EU Telecom Commissioner Viviane Reding, who spearheaded the move, yesterday.

“The Commission will, however, continue to monitor prices, in particular for SMS and data roaming, to make sure consumers do not suffer in other ways and to ensure after three years there is no longer a need to regulate. I hope that operators now understand the EU’s ability to act. My message to them: Move now and bring SMS and data roaming charges down quickly, or we will be forced to also intervene there very shortly.”

Following the parliament’s approval of the new regulations in May, Maltese MEP Joseph Muscat, a member of the EP’s industry committee who had penned the consumer protection aspect, commented: “We kept our word. Eighty per cent of European consumers will benefit from the new tariff automatically, while the remaining – most of which are businesses and already pay competitive prices – will still have the right to request their operator to switch them to this tariff. This means that the rights of consumers, especially the most vulnerable ones, will be protected.”

The new EU Regulation will, as of this summer, enable consumers to benefit from a “Eurotariff” that sets a maximum limit for calls made (EUR0.49 excluding VAT, per minute) and received (EUR0.24 excluding VAT, per minute) when abroad, while operators are expected to compete below the consumer cap. The price caps will be further reduced over 2008 and 2009.

The new regulations will oblige mobile phone operators to offer a Eurotariff to all customers by 30 July at the latest. Customers without an existing roaming package and who react immediately will benefit from a Eurotariff by 30 August latest.

For consumers who fail to react and who do not have an existing roaming package, the Eurotariff will apply automatically from 30 September. Subscribers who already have a roaming package can also choose a Eurotariff and must inform their operator of this choice.

The EU Roaming Regulation also forces operators to keep all customers informed about roaming prices. These transparency obligations will also allow consumers to identify easily the best roaming deals available and also know the prices they have to pay when it matters most – while they are roaming.

There will also be wholesale caps for the prices that operators charge each other for roaming which will apply two months after today’s publication. For the next 12 months, the wholesale cap is set at EUR0.30.

The publication in the EU’s Official Journal on 29 June means that the EU Roaming Regulation will become law on 30 June in all 27 EU member states. The regulation will be applicable for three years and during the period the Commission, together with national regulators, will monitor the regulation’s implementation closely.

The Commission will assess the regulation within 18 months to determine whether or not to prolong the regulation and whether it needs to intervene again to also include SMS and data roaming.