No more roaming fees in Europe as of July 2014

Good news for anyone living in any of the 27 EU countries: as of next July, you’ll pay the same rate for calls and data when travelling within Europe as you do at home, reports The Telegraph.

Consumers will next year be able to use their mobile phones across the European Union for the same price as at home, it is planned, after officials voted to fast-track major reforms of telecoms regulation.

Roaming fees for voice calls, texts and internet access will effectively be completely scrapped under the proposals, which are part of a broader effort to create a single European telecoms market … 

Roaming fees can often be extortionate, with call fees of over £1 ($1.56) per minute, and data charges which can easily rack up hundreds of pounds for quite ordinary usage. The banning of roaming fees applies only for European customers: customers from the USA and other countries will still pay roaming charges when visiting Europe.

The EU estimates that carriers will initially see a 2 percent drop in revenue, but expect it to benefit them in the longer term by encouraging greater use of mobiles while travelling and by making it possible for networks to attract customers across borders.