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7 Aug, 2013

Across Europe, phone call rates differ by 774%!!

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Brussels, European Commission Press release, 6 August 2013 – Mobile users across the European Union face huge price differences for the same services. The biggest price difference is in domestic mobile calls – a 774% difference between Lithuania, the cheapest country, and Netherlands, the most expensive. These price differences cannot be explained by differences in quality, differences in the cost to provide the service, or by differences between countries in consumer purchasing power.

European Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes said: “As these numbers clearly show, the 28 national telecoms markets in Europe today are not benefitting consumers like a single market would. It is critical for the whole EU to move quickly to build a real single market to achieve a truly connected continent.”

 

 

There are much smaller price differentials in other categories of basic goods and services in the European single market. For example a litre of milk can be bought for between €0.69 and €0.99 wherever they are in the EU, a price difference of 43%. An occasional purchase like an iPad is subject to only an 11% price difference across the EU.

 

 

In September, Vice President Neelie Kroes will present a new package aimed at strengthening the Telecoms single market.