03 December 2010 | Author: N. Hamilton Media copywriter
Europe's telecommunications commissioner, Neelie Kroes, is to review mobile phone cross-border roaming charges in a move that could see mobile internet charges capped, just as smart phone adoption rates soar.
Kroes is said to have informed Europe's 27 telecommunications ministers that she will consider how to reduce and eventually eliminate the charges, while colleague Paul Rubig having indicated that legislators are likely to impose capping mobile data roaming fees early next year - making it cheaper and easier for smart phone users to search the web on-the-go.
According to a report in the The New York Times, Kroes has explained that while previous legislation has reduced the wholesale cost of cross-borders mobile data downloads, savings have not been passed from companies to consumers.
As the burgeoning smart phone market continues to swell, the minister conceded that new legislation is needed to redress the imbalance - particularly in the price caps that separate gigabyte and megabyte download costs.
"Regulated reductions in the wholesale cost of data roaming have not yet been passed on to consumers," Kroes said. While Rubig added "We should have used gigabyte instead of megabyte in the original legislation. I expect we will take up the issue next year.
With analysis of the American mobile telecommunications market showing smart phone adoption soaring - 30 per cent of handsets used in the US are said to be smart phones as consumers move from standard issue to high-status mobile devices including the iPhone, Blackberry and Windows 7 phone - it would seem that Europe's mobile fee capping move could further incentivise and fuel smart phone adoption on this side of the pond too.
Europe considers capping mobile charges as smart phone adoption soars
Europe's telecommunications commissioner, Neelie Kroes, is to review mobile phone cross-border roaming charges in a move that could see mobile internet charges capped, just as smart phone adoption rates soar.Kroes is said to have informed Europe's 27 telecommunications ministers that she will consider how to reduce and eventually eliminate the charges, while colleague Paul Rubig having indicated that legislators are likely to impose capping mobile data roaming fees early next year - making it cheaper and easier for smart phone users to search the web on-the-go.
According to a report in the The New York Times, Kroes has explained that while previous legislation has reduced the wholesale cost of cross-borders mobile data downloads, savings have not been passed from companies to consumers.
As the burgeoning smart phone market continues to swell, the minister conceded that new legislation is needed to redress the imbalance - particularly in the price caps that separate gigabyte and megabyte download costs.
"Regulated reductions in the wholesale cost of data roaming have not yet been passed on to consumers," Kroes said. While Rubig added "We should have used gigabyte instead of megabyte in the original legislation. I expect we will take up the issue next year.
With analysis of the American mobile telecommunications market showing smart phone adoption soaring - 30 per cent of handsets used in the US are said to be smart phones as consumers move from standard issue to high-status mobile devices including the iPhone, Blackberry and Windows 7 phone - it would seem that Europe's mobile fee capping move could further incentivise and fuel smart phone adoption on this side of the pond too.
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