As of today, European mobile operators are obliged to offer customers a consumption limit on data communications. The measure is part of the European deliberations package defined to regulate the mobile communications market in roaming and aims to end surprises in bills, when users decide to use data services outside the country of origin.
As defined by the European Commission, mobile operators have to provide an alert and cut-off system that sets a maximum consumption ceiling at an accumulated value of 50 euros. When the user reaches 80 percent of this authorized credit, he is warned that he is approaching the limit and when he reaches it, the connection is blocked.
In addition to this ceiling defined by the EC for cutting data communications in roaming, other consumption limits may be stipulated by the customer. July is the deadline for each customer to expressly express to its operator the desire to see defined consumption alerts with other ceilings. Whoever does not do so will be assigned the value pre-defined by the EC and with the guarantee that they will not spend more than 50 euros when accessing the Internet abroad, using the service provided by their mobile operator, on their mobile phone or laptop.
In the communication where it recalls the entry into force of the measure, the EC cites some examples of spending that caused real shocks in the consumers who made them, due to the lack of knowledge of the tariffs to which they were subject. The most striking example is that of a German tourist who, traveling to France, decided to download a television program from the Internet. The bill reached 46 thousand euros.
Remember that the maximum price per megabyte between operators had also been regulated by the EC.
