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Cost of roaming charges to rocket after Brexit


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Old 02-01-2017, 10:17
MargMck
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As a remaining snowflake really looking forward to 2017, a year of told you so and yet again having to visibly show 51.9% of people what is really meant by the grass is greener. Happy New YearrrrrrrrrrArghhhhhhh......
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Old 02-01-2017, 10:30
Doctor_Wibble
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Jesus. That's news to me (they typically use the 50p/min range). It's scandalous how they haven't been moved to 09xx like all the premium rate numbers
It's an insanely wide range of possible costs - if someone really feels the need one of these numbers they should foot their own bill.

And nowadays it's easy enough to have a work mobile and a personal mobile (or a dual-sim one) and if (as per example given) you want to sell a used car without giving me your real number I ain't buying and you can go and use a dealership because I will not be paying for your convenience
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Old 02-01-2017, 13:35
dave666
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Does the complaining never end so what you may have to pay a little more to use your phone in Europe. A small price to pay to be free from the EU dictatorship
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Old 02-01-2017, 15:17
Parker45
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Does the complaining never end so what you may have to pay a little more to use your phone in Europe. A small price to pay to be free from the EU dictatorship
It may mean nothing to the hard line Brexiteers but people who voted Leave, having been told how wonderful the future outside the EU would be, will wonder why everything is going to be so much more expensive.
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Old 02-01-2017, 15:31
Staunchy
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It may mean nothing to the hard line Brexiteers but people who voted Leave, having been told how wonderful the future outside the EU would be, will wonder why everything is going to be so much more expensive.
We haven't left yet.

I voted to remain, but I'm waiting to see what happens before I throw my toys out of the pram. I'm certainly not going to speculate that "everything is going to be so much more expensive".
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Old 02-01-2017, 15:37
Doctor_Wibble
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... I voted to remain, but I'm waiting to see what happens before I throw my toys out of the pram. I'm certainly not going to speculate that "everything is going to be so much more expensive".
Don't worry, all the extra publicised speculation means that retailers will be less reluctant to just put their prices up anyway, now that everyone has been suitably 'primed' and won't riot and/or complain.

Yes, I am suggesting that people are writing their very own self-fulfilling prophecy - there's more than enough turbulence coming down the road already, we don't need any extra bonus 'damage multipliers'...
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Old 02-01-2017, 15:52
MargMck
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We haven't left yet.

I voted to remain, but I'm waiting to see what happens before I throw my toys out of the pram. I'm certainly not going to speculate that "everything is going to be so much more expensive".
I'm also going to guess you are also not addicted to your phone like some hysterical toddler with a dummy. I bet you can find a small restaurant in a small Parisian street without a phone, as well.
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Old 02-01-2017, 15:57
Staunchy
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I'm also going to guess you are also not addicted to your phone like some hysterical toddler with a dummy. I bet you can find a small restaurant in a small Parisian street without a phone, as well.
Bah! Paris! I prefer Northern Europe where every bar and restaurant has Wifi so I can scan the media for negative stories associated with Brexit and have a white Christmas while I'm doing it.
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Old 03-01-2017, 01:42
droogiefret
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Does the complaining never end so what you may have to pay a little more to use your phone in Europe. A small price to pay to be free from the EU dictatorship
There was and is no EU dictatorship. European countries respect each others sovereignty. If you want to see disrespect of sovereignty look no further than the last Chinese delegation and their disgraceful treatment of the Queen. And watch over the coming years how our newly liberated government cow tows to every Tom, Dick and Harry in the world as we attempt to scratch some kind of economic viability together.

Honestly, this claim that we have somehow regained sovereignty by voting to leave the EU is the most ironic of all the ignorances paraded by those enamoured by Brexit.
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Old 03-01-2017, 06:43
InMyHO
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Providing international links has proved massively profitable for phone companies more-or-less since the first cables were laid. I do not mean very profitable but obscenely so with operational margin percentages in the high nineties once the fiddling was eliminated. The EU took action to kill off this blatant, naked profiteering that had only been possible because telecoms was in the hands of monopolies and then oligopolies. Notably, national governments never acted to sort this out.

Ironically businesses will sometimes talk about this as meddling in markets. They will speak in anti-free-market terms. Of course the oligopoly meant that the very heart of the issue was an utter lack of freedom and legitimised price fixing.

Roaming charges in Europe will increase unless action is taken. Our best hope is that they might not increase by much but it would be great to hear from our politicians that they will take steps to ensure we are not exploited once we are out of the EU umbrella. To hear that our national government will take up the mantle which will be dropped once we leave the EU. We don't hear these kinds of reassurances.

On the other hand though here on this forum we see an Orwellian response. If the corporations with their restricted market practices do exploit us then our response should be to not use our phones, cut ourselves off and use printed guides because after all this used to be how we worked twenty years ago. This newspeak unwillingness to engage in the real world is utterly frightening and chilling to the core. It encapsulates the head-in-the-sand approach being espoused by some who promoted leave. Experts ask questions that are inconvenient so say "we have had enough of experts". Phones get costly so we say "don't use your phone". The court make a judicial decision on a narrow point of law and now the whole of the judiciary should come under political control.

I know that many who want to leave the EU are better than this and share the same concerns that, for example, corporations should not be allowed to use Brexit to rip-off the British public. It seems that of those who are most vocal amongst the leavers so many have been in the newspeak post-truth camp however. A loud and opinionated set who are determined that the past was better country.
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Old 03-01-2017, 06:51
Resonance
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All that's happened with the reduction in roaming charges is that everyone has had to pay, regardless of whether they use their phones abroad or not. When a business is forced to make less money in one way, it makes it up somewhere else. So bigger bills for everyone, whether they use their phones abroad or not.
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Old 03-01-2017, 07:26
InMyHO
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When a business is forced to make less money in one way, it makes it up somewhere else. So bigger bills for everyone, whether they use their phones abroad or not.
This is true only under very specific conditions, one of which is that the business is close to minimum sustainable margin and another being that it has sufficient elasticity in its other market sectors. I would argue that it is not true as a generalisation. Monopolies have exceedingly poor operational performance and so cost saving is a more usual reaction and particularly so when the monopolistic coverage is unequal across different sectors as here.

All that's happened with the reduction in roaming charges is that everyone has had to pay, regardless of whether they use their phones abroad or not.
We know that the profits were unrealistic and evidence suggests that the businesses have not directly tried to "make it up somewhere else". Although the numbers are lost in all of the many things that have been happening there has been restructuring (staff reductions) across European mobile operations while we can guess that the pace of diversification has been faster than it would have been.
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Old 03-01-2017, 07:39
Resonance
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This is true only under very specific conditions, one of which is that the business is close to minimum sustainable margin and another being that it has sufficient elasticity in its other market sectors. I would argue that it is not true as a generalisation. Monopolies have exceedingly poor operational performance and so cost saving is a more usual reaction and particularly so when the monopolistic coverage is unequal across different sectors as here.



We know that the profits were unrealistic and evidence suggests that the businesses have not directly tried to "make it up somewhere else". Although the numbers are lost in all of the many things that have been happening there has been restructuring (staff reductions) across European mobile operations while we can guess that the pace of diversification has been faster than it would have been.
Well the networks have certainly being hiking their domestic out of bundle prices. Companies like to hold on to their profits. Artificially capping profits in one sector of their business will likely mean bigger charges elsewhere.

I mean the EU could tell Tesco they can't charge more then £1 for fillet steak, champagne and wild salmon. I'd hazard a guess though that prices would increase elsewhere to compensate.

Just like the government, what's given with one hand is taken with the other.

As the saying goes in these parts "you don't get owt for nowt"
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Old 03-01-2017, 21:30
Impinger
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All that's happened with the reduction in roaming charges is that everyone has had to pay, regardless of whether they use their phones abroad or not. When a business is forced to make less money in one way, it makes it up somewhere else. So bigger bills for everyone, whether they use their phones abroad or not.
This is true only under very specific conditions.

When a business of any kind has a revenue stream of any kind curtailed, it simply finds another way of getting it back. To try and say that it is only possible under very specific circumstances is complete and utter bollocks.
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Old 03-01-2017, 22:07
trunkster
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http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/b...r-nations.html

So on top of holidays already costing far more due to Sterling being in the toilet, using our phones abroad is going to shoot up,

The EU has done a great job of stamping down on phone companies ripping us off when in other EU countries - don't expect Theresa May's government to be so tough on the likes of Vodafone post Brexit.

Its somewhat depressing how more expensive life is going to become post Brexit, for little discernible benefit.
Excellent news
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Old 04-01-2017, 07:33
InMyHO
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When a business of any kind has a revenue stream of any kind curtailed, it simply finds another way of getting it back. To try and say that it is only possible under very specific circumstances is complete and utter bollocks.
If you don't have any specific relevant and insightful knowledge and you lack either subject-matter expertise or the mental flexibility to comprehend the arguments being presented, then make up for those deficiencies by shouting - or in written form by swearing.

Schooling is universal; some are taught, others are educated.
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Old 04-01-2017, 12:39
ChristmasCake
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It's not crap. It's always worked well for me when I've been abroad. Give it a go, you'll be surprised how easy it is.
My phone is locked to EE. I can't change my sim. That being said, I actually have a 'Euro' sim, my calls and texts are currently free anywhere in Europe.

I currently have access to bolt ons for data too, at a fairly reasonable cost.

As I travel to Europe regularly, why should I have to suffer if roaming charges were to be increased?

I'm not interested in changing my contract to get a dual-sim phone, because it would probably cost me more..
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Old 04-01-2017, 12:47
Pumping Iron
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My phone is locked to EE. I can't change my sim. That being said, I actually have a 'Euro' sim, my calls and texts are currently free anywhere in Europe.

I currently have access to bolt ons for data too, at a fairly reasonable cost.

As I travel to Europe regularly, why should I have to suffer if roaming charges were to be increased?

I'm not interested in changing my contract to get a dual-sim phone, because it would probably cost me more..
You dont have to suffer anything, if you choose to suffer, that's upto you. You can get your phone unlocked for free with EE.
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Old 04-01-2017, 13:01
Glawster2002
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The Conservative 2015 manifesto stated they would abide by the referendum result. That continuing EU membership was reliant on remain winning the referendum. If Conservative MPs fail to adhere to that then they brake a pledge on which they were elected.

The referendum was to leave the EU. That is a clear mandate. Leaving the EU is to cease being party to the treatise on European Union. That includes free movement and the single market.

If the UK government negotiates a new agreement with the EU that is something which it has no clear electoral mandate by way of election manifesto or referendum.
So 52% - 48% to leave is a clear mandate, but prior to the vote didn't Farage say that a 52 - 48% vote to remain would be "unfinished business"?
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Old 04-01-2017, 13:11
moox
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So 52% - 48% to leave is a clear mandate, but prior to the vote didn't Farage say that a 52 - 48% vote to remain would be "unfinished business"?
Indeed he did. And he was even saying that after the polls closed, when it still seemed like remain were going to win.

The much maligned petition for a second referendum was actually started by a Brexiter, before the result was known!

Strange, that.
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Old 04-01-2017, 13:56
ChristmasCake
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You dont have to suffer anything, if you choose to suffer, that's upto you. You can get your phone unlocked for free with EE.
I didn't know that, they kept that from me when I was travelling, that being said, its still be a pain in the ass using a different sim anyway.

The whole point of the sim I have is that I can just go to any European country and carry on without having to change anything.

Also, given this why would I want two contracts when I happily get by with one ATM? I wouldn't want a pay as you go because I find it restrictive.

I get that this is only hypothetical at the moment, but at the same time I'd find it expensive and frustrating if it did happen.

I carry out some freelance work while in Europe and everything is based off my existing number.

I have a fair amount of goodwill associated with this number too which I have had for over 10 years..
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Old 04-01-2017, 14:13
Pumping Iron
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I didn't know that, they kept that from me when I was travelling, that being said, its still be a pain in the ass using a different sim anyway.

The whole point of the sim I have is that I can just go to any European country and carry on without having to change anything.

Also, given this why would I want two contracts when I happily get by with one ATM? I wouldn't want a pay as you go because I find it restrictive.

I get that this is only hypothetical at the moment, but at the same time I'd find it expensive and frustrating if it did happen.

I carry out some freelance work while in Europe and everything is based off my existing number.

I have a fair amount of goodwill associated with this number too which I have had for over 10 years..
Fair enough, the solutions are cheap, easy and obvious, but if you want to hypothetically make life more difficult and expensive, it's your call.
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Old 04-01-2017, 14:25
Ads
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Fair enough, the solutions are cheap, easy and obvious, but if you want to hypothetically make life more difficult and expensive, it's your call.
They issue is that all of these 'solutions' are worse and more expensive than what we have at present.
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Old 04-01-2017, 14:31
Pumping Iron
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They issue is that all of these 'solutions' are worse and more expensive than what we have at present.
Yes, hypothetically it may cost you a few quid and a few minutes of your time.
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Old 04-01-2017, 14:51
Granny McSmith
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They issue is that all of these 'solutions' are worse and more expensive than what we have at present.
But if what we have at present is going to change, it's up to you to find the best solution, isn't it?

Or you could just sulk instead. Your choice.
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