EU cracks down on texting charges

The European Commission today launched a crackdown on high mobile phone texting charges – spurred by the success of last year’s legislation to cap mobile call roaming charges.

EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding warned phone companies last January to cut texting charges voluntarily or face EU rules forcing them to do so.

Today she signalled that voluntary reductions so far were not enough and proposed dramatic moves to slash texting rates by as much as 60% to a maximum of 11c, and to reduce the cost of receiving data on a mobile phone while abroad.

She also recommended mandatory billing by the second, rather than minute, after the first 31 seconds – cutting wasted cost for texters who finish texting just after a new billing minute has begun.

Three months after last year’s enforced roaming call price caps, a survey showed that roaming charges had fallen by an average of 60%.

Ireland saw dramatic cuts in roaming costs to 32.23c for calls made and 15.7c for calls received.

Mrs Reding hopes that, if MEPs and EU government ministers agree her latest plans, texting costs will show similar reductions below the agreed maximum price ceiling – itself nearly two-thirds lower than some current texting charges.

The current price legislation on roaming charges expires on June 30 2010, by which time, the Commission hopes, all mobile operators will be in healthy competition at rates below the permitted highest charges, for texting as well as roaming. If not, Brussels has warned, legislation could be extended.