European operators slash data roaming charges

Weeks after EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding vowed to take action [1] in response to concerns Europeans are paying too much for mobile data services outside their native country, five Euro operators have agreed to a reduced wholesale rate of €0.25 (about 36 cents U.S.) per MB of data downloaded, effective March 1. Multi-national operator 3, Dutch operator KPN, Belgium's BASE, Germany's E-Plus and Poland's Play--who collectively span 10 European markets and a subscriber base of more than 295 million, roughly 60 percent of the EU's overall consumer population of 495 million--challenged rival operators to slash their data roaming fees in response, noting the average European retail roaming rate currently stands at €5.24 (U.S. $7.59) per MB. "Simple and transparent wholesale pricing will enable competition to establish more consumer-friendly offers right across the EU," said for Hutchison 3G Europe's MD of European Telecommunications Christian Salbaing in a prepared statement.

For more on the data roaming price cuts:
- read this release [2]

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