14 DAY TRIAL // Starting with July 1 next year, users in the 27 countries that are members of the European Union will no longer have to pay roaming fees when using their mobile phones for calling, texting, or accessing the Internet while traveling abroad within the community.
The move is expected to lower carriers’ revenues by around 2 percent, yet should also prove beneficial for them, as users are expected to keep their contracts even when abroad, a recent article on The Telegraph explains.
The new European Commission decision is also expected to facilitate merges between wireless carriers and to spur competition, which should determine more of them to invest heavily into their infrastructure.
At the moment, there are over 100 companies operating across the 27 countries in EU. This fragmentation is believed to be a barrier for network upgrades and similar investments, but the new decision should change that.