EU Commission opens the doors to free mobile roaming

EU countries have approved the European Commission's proposal for fair-use limits on 'roam like home', the EC announced. The council of EU representatives, Cocom approved the rules at a meeting 12 December. 
However, to avoid knock-on effects on domestic prices given big discrepancies across the bloc in prices and consumption patterns, the EU had to define "fair use" rules to ensure consumers did not abuse the end of roaming by buying cheap SIM cards in one EU country and using them permanently elsewhere.

This means the Commission can confirm the details ahead of its deadline of 15 December, and mobile operators will have six months to implement the changes, by the end of all roaming surcharges in June 2017. 

Operators will also be able to ask regulators for permission to apply roaming surcharges after June if they stand to lose at least 3 percent of mobile revenues when providing "roam like at home".

The EU still needs to agree on caps for the wholesale charges operators pay each other to keep their respective customers connected when abroad in order for retail roaming charges to be abolished in June.

"EU Member States voted: we can adopt proposed safeguards to make end of roaming work," Commission Vice-President Andrus Ansip said on Twitter.

The last piece of the puzzle is approving new wholesale roaming rates. The European Parliament and member states each approved much different prices and must now negotiate a compromise. Talks on this begin this week in Brussels, the Commission said.