The European Union is in the process of rubber stamping an agreement that will see the end of roaming charges for mobile users in member states.
Thanks to the Brexit vote, Brits may lose out on the long-awaited eradication of the punitive charges that have given many folks post holiday blues following their jaunts across the continent.
Instead of stress-free mobile use while in the EU, British mobile users now face the return of high roaming charges once we’ve left the bloc.
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Brits may even face fees of €10 per MB which, as the FT points out, would leave users with a bill of €50 for streaming a single song on Spotify.
One telecoms executive told the Financial Times that those would be the “worst case scenario” fees if Britain can’t agree a free trade deal with the EU.
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Should this happen, it would be up to individual UK networks like EE, Three and Vodafone to forge deals with European peers in each of the nations, the report said.
It seems difficult for the UK as a whole to make a bilateral deal with EU member states to chop roaming charges.
As the report points out, such an agreement would have to be extended to other nations in the World Trade Organisation.
The news is the latest blow to Brit tech fans following the June 23 referendum. Many popular tech products have increased in price thanks to the slumping pound.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.