EU plans to phase out roaming charges in telecoms shake-up
THE European Commission yesterday proposed a price cap on cross-border phone calls in Europe and asked for veto power over sales of mobile spectrum, as part of a fresh attempt to overhaul the bloc’s telecommunications sector.
Other elements of the proposals include cutting red tape for operators with cross-border businesses, allowing providers to charge more for carrying data-heavy services at high speeds and harmonising the sales of lucrative mobile spectrum by EU countries.
The proposals are intended to encourage telecom companies to invest more in broadband network infrastructure to ensure that European citizens can download data from the internet as quickly as their counterparts in Asia and North America.
“The European Commission says no to roaming premiums, yes to net neutrality, yes to investment, yes to new jobs,” EU telecoms chief Neelie Kroes said in a statement.