Telecom monopoly overcharging Mexicans billions

Telephone service in Mexico is run by a monopoly that is overcharging customers billions of dollars, according to a new report by the Organization for Co-operation and Development (OECD). [via CNet]

... In total, Mexicans are being overcharged $13.4 billion a year, according to the report, and poor people are being charged disproportionately higher. This equals a $25 billion cost to the Mexican economy each year, which is equivalent to nearly 2 percent of the country's GDP, say the report's authors.

The culprit companies, America Movil (mobile phones) and Telmex (fixed lines), are owned by the world's richest man--Carlos Slim. According to Forbes' list of top billionaires, Slim's net worth is $74 billion; next in line is Bill Gates with a $56 billion worth.

Read full article. Image from Dvorak.

Cellphone Bill Shock Without Leaving Home

Wireless carriers have abandoned unlimited offers, which were costing them money, many are still using the marketing language of “all you can eat” and “flat rate.” The result has been an increase in consumer bill shock in Europe and the United States, reports Kevin O’Brien in The New York Times.

Smartphone data tariff warning

Mobile phone operators must do more to help people avoid getting unexpectedly large bills after going online, says the Communications Ombudsman.

[via the BBC]

Brussels fights bill shocks for roaming phone charges

Brussels goes to battle this week over high costs for Europeans in using mobile phones across EU borders, with a new proposal slated to slash expensive roaming bills to almost zero by 2015.

[via AFP]

Cost of Euro mobile roaming falls

Good news. The cost of making and receiving mobile phone calls while travelling in Europe has come down again.

The European Commission wants to make roaming rates the same as domestic rates by 2015.

[via the BBC]

E.U. to Review Mobile Operators' Policies on Web Access

Neelie Kroes, the European Union’s telecommunications commissioner, on Tuesday will ask an advisory panel of national regulators to examine whether mobile operators are upholding the principle of network neutrality, which calls for all data traffic to be treated equally.

[via The New York Times]

FCC to vote on mandatory wireless-data roaming

According to Cnet, the FCC may soon set new rules that could help ensure that your smartphone is able to access the Internet anywhere in the U.S. that wireless service is offered, even if your provider doesn't offer network coverage.

On Thursday the FCC will vote on new rules that would force wireless phone companies, such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless, which have the largest nationwide coverage, to offer roaming rates to competitors at "fair and reasonable rates." The measure, which has the backing of FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, is expected to be passed by the FCC at its monthly public meeting.

Read more.

Europe Seeks Ways to Lower Data Roaming Charges

European telecommunications commissioner Neelie Kroes said on Monday that she probably would seek new regulations to end the high charges Europeans face when using data services on smartphones outside their home countries. [via The New York Times]

Prices for mobile data roaming across European borders can reach 2.60 euros, or about $3.50, a downloaded megabyte, compared with an average of 5 cents a megabyte paid at home, Mrs. Kroes said.

Read full article.

Europeans still fear roming bill when travelling in the EU

This is one of the facts behind the data of a survey released by the European Commission which shows that three over four EU citizens are worried about the cost of using their mobile phone when travelling in the EU. Regarding mobile Internet-related services, not even 20% of Europens do consider that the costs of data-roaming for Internet are fair. euroalert.net reports.

The results of this Eurobarometer survey, as well as the results of the public consultation on the future of the Roaming Regulation which closed on 11th February, will feed into the Commission's review of current EU roaming rules due by June 2011.

Please, Just Tell Me When I’m Nearing My Limit

Last October, the FCC proposed requiring wireless carriers to alert consumers when they’re about to reach their plans’ limits — in call minutes, text messages or data use — so they won’t be shocked at billing time. The New York Times reports.

It conducted its own survey of cellphone users last spring and found that 17 percent had experienced a sudden increase in their bill at some point. That’s 30 million people, the FCC says.

The likelihood of experiencing bill shock can only increase, now that major carriers are dropping all-you-can-eat data plans. Smartphone users, in particular, are exposed to a new possibility of receiving a nasty surprise when the bill arrives.

The FCC’s proposals are modest, calling only for alerts when use limits are approached and again when they are reached. Requiring alerts would be the least restrictive way for the industry to address the problem.

Consumer advocate groups are urging the F.C.C. to go further, by requiring wireless carriers to get a customer’s permission to continue service when use limits have been reached. Unless the consumer expresses his or her willingness to continue, the service would be suspended, removing any possibility of bill shock.

Cell phone bill shock stories from around the word:

-- US Haiti Worker comes home to $35'000 cell phone bill (2010)

-- Tweens rack up 9,700 cell phone bill on vacation at Dead Sea (2010)

-- MP hit with $10'000 iPhone bill (2010)

-- $62,000 telephone bill for downloading Prison Break (2008)

-- $22,000 bill for downloading four episodes of Friends while abroad. (2008)

-- $950 bill for two hours of TV on cell phone (2006)

-- Woman goes to court about her phone bill (2005)

Australian Telco watchdog swamped with 167,955 complaints

Australians made a whopping 167,955 complaints - almost 650 per day - to ACCAN, the telecommunications watchdog in 2009/10 including a surge in grievances about global roaming charges.

[via The Sydney Morning Herald]

Europe to Examine Cap on Roaming Charges for Mobile Internet

According to The New York Times, the European Union’s telecommunications commissioner said Thursday that she would conduct a review of mobile phone roaming charges, a process that could lead to the first cap on the retail cost carriers charge for cross-border mobile Internet use in Europe.

Neelie Kroes, the commissioner, said she would inform the bloc’s 27 telecommunications ministers at a meeting on Friday that she would look for ways to reduce and eventually eliminate the fees.

Read more.

U.K. Regulator Adopts Mobile-Phone Taping Rules Over Protests From Banks

The U.K. financial regulator adopted rules to record traders’ mobile-phone calls over the opposition of banks that said the cost of implementing the measures may cost at least 10,000 pounds ($16,000) a phone every year. Bloomberg reports.

The Financial Services Authority today said “relevant communications made with, sent from or received on mobile phones and other handheld” devices must be recorded and stored for six months. The rules apply to devices issued for business purposes and firms must take “reasonable steps” to ensure the conversations don’t migrate to private devices.

One investment bank told the FSA that it would cost 500,000 pounds monitor the calls of 50 users. Another global investment bank said the cost of recording BlackBerrys issued to front- office staff would be more than 2.6 million pounds a year, the FSA said.

Read full article.

Supreme Court hears sales tax case on 'free' phone

In a dispute that could affect consumers nationwide, the Supreme Court took up a case Tuesday revolving around the terms of a cellphone contract and testing when disgruntled customers can file a class-action lawsuit rather than be forced to arbitrate out of court. USA Today reports.

The case, begun by a couple in California who were charged $30 in taxes for a "free" cellphone when they signed up for service, pits the terms of federal arbitration law against a state policy permitting class-action lawsuits.

Read full article.

FCC seeks to remedy cellphone users' 'bill shock'

According to The Washington Post, The Federal Communications Commission wants cellphone customers to know: It can hear you now.

Next week, the agency will unveil a proposal to address "bill shock" by requiring that carriers notify users of overcharges and sudden increases in their bills.

Read full article.

Australia. Mobile 'free call' racket 'puts lives at risk'

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, suicide prevention and crisis support lines for children say price gouging by mobile phone companies on calls to their helplines is putting lives in danger.

Crisis lines such as Lifeline and Kids Helpline say a large and increasing portion of their callers are on mobiles and the exorbitant fees are discouraging and preventing people from seeking help.

Consumer groups ave lodged a joint so-called "super complaint" over the matter with the communications watchdog, the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

Read full article.

Texting a gold mine for phone companies

From The Mercury News, insight on the actual pricing of text messaging.

Text messages take up very little space -- about 140 bytes, as they are being transmitted. That's really why text messages are kept short. The cell phone companies charge about 20 cents a text message.

At the same time, cell phone companies charge roughly 15 cents a megabyte in an unlimited data plan -- data in this case meaning Web surfing, streaming music or video or sending e-mail. To explain why there is such a big difference, Verizon Wireless and AT&T, the two largest wireless carriers, say that text messages travel on a voice network and data on a separate data network. It's like comparing apples and oranges they say.

But industry analysts say the phone companies are facing problems that will hasten the shift to Internet calling. The revenue from voice calls is falling, and revenue from text messaging will flatten, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley.

Read full article.

Related: - What Carriers Aren’t Eager to Tell You About Texting

Tweens Rack up $9,700 Cell Phone Bill While Vacationing at Dead Sea

While on vacation at the Dead Sea, Sam (13) and Sarah (11) racked up a $9,700 cell phone bill by checking their Facebook accounts, sending text messages and playing online games. Switched reports.

The kids told My Fox Houston that they had received alerts about the roaming charges, which they naturally ignored, and their mother said she had never dreamed the bill could be so expensive -- even though she had noticed her kids using their phones. Verizon has decided to knock $4,000 off the Ivanhoes' bill, most likely because Cindy claims she didn't receive any roaming alerts to her phone.

Read full article.

Related misfortunes:

-- MP hit with $10'000 iPhone bill

-- $62,000 telephone bill for downloading Prison Break

-- $950 bill for two hours of TV on cell phone

-- $22,000 bill for downloading four episodes of Friends while abroad.

FCC issues advice on traveling with mobile phones

As the U.S. enters the summer vacation season, the FCC has launched an educational program to remind mobile-phone customers traveling internationally how to avoid high-cost calls.

At Wireless World Travel, mobile users planning a trip abroad will find tips and options to avoid unanticipated roaming or data service charges.

[via Network World]

EU court rejects cell phone cap challenge

The European Union's highest court has rejected a challenge by four British cell phone companies to a Europe-wide price cap on fees for using a phone abroad. Business Week reports.

Vodafone, Telefonica O2, T-Mobile and Orange had argued that maximum price limits for "roaming" -- making or receiving calls outside the user's home nation -- were illegal.

A Tuesday ruling from the European Court of Justice dismissed their arguments, saying the EU's executive had the right to fix limits for roaming fees, which telecoms companies were charging at well above real costs.

FCC says consumers are 'bill shocked'

According to an FCC survey, one in six customers have been shocked by unexpected cell phone charges. [via News.com]

The agency conducted a survey of roughly 3,000 Americans and found that about 30 million Americans, or one in six mobile users, have experienced a sudden increase in their monthly bill that is not caused by a change in service plan.

The survey indicated that 84 percent of respondents said their mobile carrier did not contact them when they were about to exceed their allowed minutes, text messages, or data downloads. And about 88 percent said their carrier did not contact them after their bill suddenly increased.

FCC Survey Confirms Consumers Experience Mobile Bill Shock and Confusion About Early Termination Fees. (Word or pdf)

EU caps roaming charges for mobile internet surfers

Mobile phone customers can control how much they want to spend on surfing the internet while travelling within the European Union (EU). ComputerAct!ve reports.

Under new roaming rules introduced by the European Commission, mobile phone operators have to offer their customers a cut-off facility to protect them from ‘bill shocks'.

Customers who want to surf the internet using their mobile devices when abroad, will have to sign up to enforce the facility initially, but from 1 July the protection becomes automatic.

Read full article.

Cell-Phone Bills: Is Text-Messaging Too Expensive?

Texting isn't just a hot medium; it's also a big eyesore on many cell-phone bills. Even so, carriers fear that their fat texting profits will soon disappear. TIME reports.

... Wireless channels contribute about a tenth of a cent to a carrier's cost, that accounting charges might be twice that and that other costs basically round to zero because texting requires so little of a mobile network's infrastructure. Summing up, Srinivasan Keshav, a professor at the University of Waterloo in Ontario and an expert on mobile computing found that a text message doesn't cost providers more than 0.3 cent.

You don't have to be a Wall Street analyst to do the quick math: with a carrier cost of one-third of a penny, when a customer pays 15 cents to send a message, 98% of that 15 cents is pure profit.

Read full article.

Related:

-- Text-message fees recommended for antitrust scrutiny

-- Lawmakers Question Increased Text Messaging Costs

Mobile roaming charges drop across Europe

Mobile phone charges will fall for millions of holidaymakers across Europe from today, after new regulations come into force to drive down the cost of roaming. The Guardian reports.

The changes – which were originally approved in 2007 – are an attempt by officials to end what they have called excessive charges.

"The roaming rip-off is now coming to an end," said EU telecommunications commissioner Viviane Reding in a statement. "Expect the new roaming rules to make it much cheaper to surf the web on your mobile while abroad in the EU."

Examples of specific costs are available at the European Commission's website.

Text-message fees recommended for antitrust scrutiny

The chairman of a Senate panel on antitrust issues last Tuesday called on the Federal Communications Commission and the Justice Department to scrutinize competitiveness in the cellphone industry, pointing to a 100% increase in some text messaging charges by four companies that control most of the market. The LA Times reports.

Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin) said that from 2006 to 2008, the price charged by the four biggest carriers for sending and receiving such messages rose from 10 cents to 20 cents.

And the increases seemed to occur in "lock step" -- first from 10 cents to 15 cents and then from 15 cents to 20 cents, with each set of increases occurring within a period of months or even weeks, said Kohl, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee's subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights.

"Are these price increases the result of a lack of competition in a highly concentrated market?" Kohl asked.

Read full article.

Previously: - Lawmakers Question Increased Text Messaging Costs

Lawmakers Question Increased Text Messaging Costs

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are questioning cell phone carriers about the increasing costs of texting. Democratic Wisconsin Sen. Herb Kohl is among the group asking questions, reports ABCwisn.

"From 2006 to 2008 for the four major carriers the price has increased by 100 percent from 10 to 20 cents a message," said Kohl.

Text messaging uses less bandwidth than almost any other service on a wireless network. Lawmakers want to know why the increase in use of texting has seen a corresponding increase in rates.

Several dozen class-action lawsuits have been filed against wireless carriers.

The suits allege the companies conspired to "fix prices" for text messages, which the companies vehemently deny.

The consumer mark-up on some text messages is an estimated 4,900 per cent, according to a leading Canadian computer scientist who testified before U.S. senators on Tuesday. The maximum cost of a single text message "very unlikely" exceeds 0.3 cents, reports Canada.com.

Syrians Boycott Mobile Phones in Protest

Syrian subscribers are fed up with the high costs of running a mobile device in their country. The protest is aimed at knocking down prices to price-points comparable to other countries in the region. Facebook and Twitter were used to help spread the campaign message.

[via IntoMobile]

Vodafone UK to Offer Borderless Roaming this Summer

Vodafone UK has announced that it is abolishing roaming charges between June and August this year - allowing calls made and SMS/MMS's sent from 43 countries (and 2 UK territories) to be charged at the same rate as their home tariff. Nice.

[via CellularNews]

EU Moves to Cut Mobile Phone Termination Rates

The European Commission launched a new assault on what it considers to be rip-off costs in mobile telephony Thursday, this time setting its sights on mobile termination rates. IDG News reports.

Termination rates are the wholesale fees phone operators charge each other for connecting a call to its network. The fees are then passed on to consumers but they are invisible.

Unlike roaming rates, this ripoff is not obvious to consumers because it is built into charges that operators offer to consumers...

EU assembly adopts new price curbs on phone calls

Using a mobile phone to send text messages or surf the Web by laptop will be up to 60 percent cheaper for travelers in the European Union under price curbs adopted by the European Parliament on Wednesday, reports Reuters.

Operators will be allowed to charge customers a maximum of 11 euro cents (14 U.S. cents) per roamed text (SMS) message, excluding sales tax, compared with current prices of about 28 cents.