THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
From Wednesday (15 May) the price for phone calls across EU member states cannot cost more than 19 cents-per-minute and text messages six cents each, excluding VAT, according to new limits introduced by Brussels. This price does not include VAT, which varies depending on the EU Member States of the calling operator (EU Member States’ rates of VAT range between 17% and 27%).
The measures were agreed as part of an overhaul of EU telecom rules last year and pushed for by the European Parliament. The caps are designed to help reduce the gap between the cost of domestic and international calls in the EU, which vary across different telecoms operators in the bloc.
“European consumers are now comprehensively covered against bill shocks when calling any European number, both at home and abroad,” said Mariya Gabriel, EU commissioner for the digital economy and society.
The average standard price of an international fixed or mobile intra-EU call is three times higher than a domestic phone call, while international intra-EU text messages are more than twice as expensive, according to the European Commission.
The introduction of price caps comes after the EU abolished roaming charges for European mobile users about two years ago. Since 15 June 2017, People can use their mobiles abroad in the EU at no extra cost. This roam like at home principle is valid for any calls, SMS as well as data use: the tariffs that apply remain the same as when the person is in their home country.
Femi Awoniyi
Click here for details of the new regulation
