EU does something useful - Dan faints

[Chippiewill]

Europe votes to cap data roaming prices, will make it cheaper to tweet from Ibiza

European Union countries already had a data roaming cutoff law in place to prevent bill shock after your next Balearic vacation, but the price of the data in question should get much cheaper very soon. The European Parliament has just voted 578 to 10 to cap the price customers pay at no more than 70 Euro cents (91 US cents) per megabyte starting from July 1st, with that price eventually dipping to 45 Euro cents (58c US) a year later and just 20 Euro cents (26 US cents) in 2014.

http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/10/e...oaming-prices/

Yay, cheap ass data roaming!

This is why we should stay in the EU, I go back on everything I've ever said about them. Heil EU.

[GommeInc]

Hmm, they mention US cents which makes me think we could still leave it behind and enjoy cheap roaming. Or are they just telling people how much Euro cents translate to, even though in reality if an America used their mobile phone it will cost considerably more?

[Chippiewill]

Hmm, they mention US cents which makes me think we could still leave it behind and enjoy cheap roaming. Or are they just telling people how much Euro cents translate to, even though in reality if an America used their mobile phone it will cost considerably more?

"if you're visiting from outside the EU, you'll be glad to hear that the anti-bill shock rule will apply to you this year as well."

Yay cheap stuff for everyone

[GommeInc]

"if you're visiting from outside the EU, you'll be glad to hear that the anti-bill shock rule will apply to you this year as well."

Yay cheap stuff for everyone

So in theory we could leave and enjoy the rates That said, I would still use WiFi where possible

[Chippiewill]

So in theory we could leave and enjoy the rates That said, I would still use WiFi where possible

Yeah, it's still pretty expensive even after the cost cuts per the mb.

[Tomm]

Still need to work on pricing outside the EU. Costs £7.50 per MB on T-Mobile. Their European pricing is quite good though, can get 50MB for £10.

[-:Undertaker:-]

I actually disagree - it is not the job of the state (Whitehall or the Brussels) to regulate prices.

[Recursion]

I actually disagree - it is not the job of the state (Whitehall or the Brussels) to regulate prices.

When the roaming data prices are enormously high for no good reason (yes, there USED to be a reason), indeed it's time for regulators to come in, otherwise companies would be running riot with everything.

Are you really that naive? You seem to constantly find fault with everything that's posted around here.

[Tomm]

That has got to be the most naive thing I've heard in quite a while. If there was no regulation in terms of prices we'd all be paying silly amounts for roaming charges. Remember, these roaming charges are mostly artificially created by mobile service providers.

I actually disagree - it is not the job of the state (Whitehall or the Brussels) to regulate prices.

[-:Undertaker:-]

In regards to a monopoly, which I know will be your responses to what i've posted below - how do you think most monopolies arise in the first place? government regulation such as price controls.

I will give one example of the water companies which i'm familiar with. A great deal of people blame the water companies for being too greedy and charging too much for the droughts and shortages we have. This, on the face of it seems rational and it would then seem rational to have the water companies prices regulated and have the government even nationalise them. But this is a false argument, because if you look at the water companies in this country - it has been the government who have regulate the companies to the extent that only a few companies exist and are unable to build backup lakes due to government regulation.

If I manage to open a new mobile operating company (which, with the amount of regulations if very difficult) and I offer a better service but for a higher price (which I also need to do to recover my costs of investing in the first place) - you are preventing me from doing this. You thus prevent the market finding its correct value and you distort it, serving only to enforce the monopoly that the main companies at the top have because they then cannot be displaced by new rivals. I mean, why do you think so many large companies support (via lobbying) candidates and governments which want regulation? because it helps cement those at the top in their place.

It is the classic law of unintended consquences, you only serve to reinforce the monopoly.

When the roaming data prices are enormously high for no good reason (yes, there USED to be a reason), indeed it's time for regulators to come in, otherwise companies would be running riot with everything.

Are you really that naive? You seem to constantly find fault with everything that's posted around here.

That has got to be the most naive thing I've heard in quite a while. If there was no regulation in terms of prices we'd all be paying silly amounts for roaming charges. Remember, these roaming charges are mostly artificially created by mobile service providers.

Yeah you're both right actually, lets regulate prices - worked well in the 1970s didn't it? why not extend it to televisions, energy, fast sports cars, football kits, clothes, iPods? hell, lets just nationalise everything!

If you seriously believe price regulation by the state (de facto nationalisation) works then frankly, well I don't even know what to say.