Agree. Think they will just delay the introduction or make it cheaper or just scrap it. It should not really be necessary if the number of UK mobile network customers going to the EU is roughly the same as the number EU mobile network customers coming to the UK. ?
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UK's Virgin Mobile and O2 Network Users Won't Face EU Roaming Charges When Traveling Abroad
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The roaming charges disappeared because we were part of the EU Single Market, the EU decided it was unlawful to charge consumers extra for travelling within the single market place. Netflix allowed access to their services abroad for the same reason.
If the UK govt so wanted they could also abolish roaming fees for UK customers in the EU, we won't hold our breath on that one though.
FYI as someone who worked for a telco, roaming charges have always been charged between telcos when someone roams from country to country. The EU directive was a ‘slight of hand’ in that telcos weren’t allowed to pass the charges directly onto the customers responsible. Instead the telcos simply added these to their general costs which they spread across their customer base.
As a result, all that happened was that the poor, who don’t enjoy foreign travel, subsidised the wealthy who run up roaming charges with their foreign travel.
As a result, all that happened was that the poor, who don’t enjoy foreign travel, subsidised the wealthy who run up roaming charges with their foreign travel.
Worth noting the changes on EE will only affect new contracts after 7th July 2021, so if you don’t upgrade then it won’t affect you, although they will probably force a tariff change on you at some point – https://ee.co.uk/help/help-new/roam...broad/what-impact-will-brexit-have-on-roaming
Nope. The EU directive didn't just prevent telcos from passing on the charges, as you know, it also introduced regulated wholesale prices to reduce the actual cost.
If anything, the grossly inflated roaming prices carriers used to charge each other were subsidizing their networks (at the cost of travelers). Obviously there is no technical reason a gigabyte abroad should cost more than a gigabyte at home (on average). It's an artificial price increase the market can charge because there's friction to switching SIMs for a few days of holidays.
same here, I've been with EE since the days of One2One.. my contract runs out in the autumn, I'll move to 02 if EE carries on charging
Lots of people saying they'd switch from EE if they don't change their policy, so it's worth noting the reason I went with EE in the first place: they're the only UK network that supports the full iPhone feature set.
O2 aren't far behind these days though, so there's a good chance I could make do without wi-fi calling from my iPad to save on roaming fees.
O2 aren't far behind these days though, so there's a good chance I could make do without wi-fi calling from my iPad to save on roaming fees.
As you have pointed out there - for most people there are more compelling reasons to choose a network other than roaming fees. I don't like extra fees but suspect it will increase their costs - O2 may be looking at absorbing the cost and writing it off as 'marketing'. But in reality most people are going to look at the plan features / price and UK coverage as 90-95% of the time they are in the UK. At £1-2/day for a typical zero to 2 weeks a year in the EU roaming charges are unlikely to be a significant concern for most.
It's all smoke, mirrors & snake oil. Personally I've found o2 to be one of the most expensive providers out there (along with 36 - 48 month device contracts), so factor in the £100 they say & bump everyone's monthly by £2 & it's covered, but tbh the monthly rates are way above that so easily accounted for. Don't give them the time of day, it's just a clickbait headline.
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I was with O2 and found their roaming unusably slow, mostly when in the US though.
I'd rather stick with three, where my roaming speeds have been very fast.
Three are also way cheaper, so a few pounds on the rare holiday is fine.
As much as I'd like to blame brexit, three also brought the charges back in for the US, which last I checked isnt in the EU, so brexit was just an excuse
I'd rather stick with three, where my roaming speeds have been very fast.
Three are also way cheaper, so a few pounds on the rare holiday is fine.
As much as I'd like to blame brexit, three also brought the charges back in for the US, which last I checked isnt in the EU, so brexit was just an excuse
Three's introduction of roaming charges is particularly galling considering they offered free roaming in many EU as well as non-EU countries for many years before the EU's roaming rules were implemented in June 2017. They are introducing new roaming charges that they did not actually have previously!
"Feel at home" / "Go roam" used to be a key part of Three's marketing and now they seem to be abandoning it completely. More really crappy, customer-hostile behaviour from the UK's worst mobile network.
Only 52% of those who voted (37% of population) - heavily screwed older, so 5.5 years later it’s a minority.
Brexit, the gift that keeps on giving. Good that O2 are making a stand (for now). Shame the rest are nothing more than money grabbing leeches 
Friction and price gouging. These companies are sharks.
I recently had to make (at very short notice) an international mobile call to the US for some urgent technical support. I was not best pleased at listening to some call waiting music that cost me more than £25, at a hefty £3 per minute.
Later, I harangued the carrier, threatening to take my business elsewhere. Result: lower monthly bills, five times the data allowance, and an “extra” thrown in that gives me cellular calls to the US for a couple of pence per minute.