MEPs agree on EU data roaming ban

After years of negotiations, MEPs have finally agreed to scrap extra costs of using a mobile phone in countries across the EU starting on15th June 2017. The ban will effectively mean that mobile phone consumers within the EU will be charged the same as they would in their home country.

According to the BBC, the ban has received a final green light in the European Parliament, and an interim cap on charges will take effect from 30 April 2016, prior to the full ban.

The cap means that mobile phone operators will not be able to surpass surcharges of; €0.05 extra per minute for calls, €0.05 per megabyte of data used and €0.02 extra per SMS sent, the news agency adds.

The European Commission has said that the cap is expected to make roaming within the member states 75% cheaper during the transition period, and some 665 MEPs have voted in favour of the change.

Roaming charges are added by mobile operators for calls, texts and internet browsing when phone users are abroad, and they have been a frequent topic of discussion as consumers often end up being loaded with massive bills.

Some critics of the ban state that the loss of revenue for mobile phone companies could potentially push up prices in general, including prices for non-travellers, the BBC adds.