EU roaming fees scrapped, but reasons for UK businesses to be cautious | News

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On the 15th June 2017, the long awaited European regulations came in, scrapping roaming fees between European Union countries.

For businesses that have employees regularly travelling in Europe and who spend significant amounts currently, this will be a welcome reduction to business costs. However, businesses should be cautious of a potential sting in the tail of this European regulation.

There are two reasons for caution:

1. Mobile Providers limiting income erosion
2. Brexit

Mobile Providers limiting income erosion

There has been general revenue/profit erosion for the networks, accelerated over the last couple of years as European roaming caps have come into force. Networks have softened the impact to their bottom line by introducing various roaming solutions to tempt businesses away from standard capped rates (as imposed by European regulation). While these roaming solutions were cost effective for users who optimised their usage, others ended up paying much more than they would have on the standard capped rates.

The total scrapping of European roaming rates will undoubtedly cause further income erosion, with mobile providers warning before the regulation came in, that home tariffs could rise to offset this impact.

This is something which ERA has started to encounter in recent months, with suppliers’ commercials becoming less competitive and other costs being massaged into contracts.

Brexit

Since the vote for Brexit, uncertainty has been the running theme of the British economy. European Roaming is just one area where uncertainty reigns and currently there is no guarantee that charges will not return in 2019, following the end of the two year UK withdrawal period.

Whilst businesses may see an immediate impact of zero European roaming costs, it is more important than ever to continue to review this element as networks are likely to think of ingenious ways of safeguarding their profitability.

Despite the tightening mobile communications market, ERA are continuing to provide successful results to clients.

For more information, please contact us.

Article by: The Communications Team

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