EU consumers will benefit from the elimination of roaming charges for another ten years.
Negotiators from the EU states and the European Parliament agreed on Thursday night to extend the popular rules beyond the end of June 2022, both sides announced.
This means that consumers can continue to use their mobile phones to make calls, surf the Internet or write text messages while traveling at the same cost as at home. Since June 15, 2017, roaming charges have been waived in the 27 EU countries as well as in Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. According to surveys, the EU regime is very popular with citizens. Actually, it would have expired in the middle of next year, but the EU Commission suggested extending it.
The agreement reached early Thursday morning also provides for some changes to the existing rules.
In this way, consumers abroad should be able to enjoy the same quality of services whenever possible.
"Deliberate throttling is a thing of the past," said the Austrian MEP and chief negotiator of the parliament Angelika Winzig.
In addition, the prices that network operators mutually charge each other for roaming are to be further reduced significantly.
The emergency number should also be able to be contacted free of charge.
All of this has yet to be confirmed by the Council of EU States and the European Parliament, but this is considered a formality.