Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union
Date: 2011-07-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: consumer protection, interactive network, mobile phone, price regulations

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 6.7.2011 
COM(2011) 402 final 

2011/0187 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union  

(Recast) 
(Text with EEA relevance) 

 
 
  
 
(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 

2011/0187 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union  

(Recast) 
(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community  ⌦ Treaty  on  the 
Functioning of the European Union ⌫ , and in particular Article 95 ⌦ 114 ⌫ thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national Parliaments, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee1, 

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions2, 

Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(cid:216) new 

Regulation  (EC)  No  717/2007  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of 
27 June 2007 on roaming on public mobile telephone networks within the Community 
3 has been substantially amended. Since further amendments are to be made, it should 
be recast in the interests of clarity. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 1 (adapted) 

The high level of the ⌦ voice, SMS and data roaming ⌫ prices payable by users of 
public  mobile  telephone  networks,  such  as  students,  business  travellers  and  tourists, 
when  using  their  mobile  telephones  when  travelling  abroad  within  the  Community 
⌦ Union ⌫  is  a  matter  of  concern  for  ⌦ consumers, ⌫  national  regulatory 
authorities,  as  well  as  for  consumers  and  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  institutions. 

1 
2 
3 

OJ C […], […], p. […]. 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ L 171, 29.6.2007, p. 32. 

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The excessive retail charges are resulting from high wholesale charges levied by the 
foreign  host  network  operator  and  also,  in  many  cases,  from  high  retail  mark-ups 
charged by the customer's own network operator. Reductions in wholesale charges are 
often  not  passed  on  to  the  retail  customer.  Although  some  operators  have  recently 
introduced  tariff  schemes  that  offer  customers  more  favourable  conditions  and 
⌦ somewhat ⌫  lower  prices,  there  is  still  evidence  that  the  relationship  between 
costs and prices is not such as ⌦ far from what ⌫ would prevail in fully competitive 
markets. 

The creation of a European social, educational and cultural area based on the mobility 
of individuals should facilitate communication between people in order to build a real 
‘Europe for Citizens’. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 2 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 3 (adapted) 

Directive 2002/19/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 
on  access  to,  and interconnection  of,  electronic  communications  networks  and 
associated  facilities  (Access  Directive)4,  Directive  2002/20/EC  of  the  European 
Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  7 March 2002  on  the  authorisation  of  electronic 
(Authorisation  Directive)5,  Directive 
communications  networks  and  services 
2002/21/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  7 March 2002  on  a 
common  regulatory  framework  for  electronic communications  networks and services 
(Framework Directive)6, Directive 2002/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the 
Council  of  7 March 2002  on  universal  service  and  users'  rights  relating  to  electronic 
communications  networks  and  services  (Universal  Service  Directive)7  and  Directive 
2002/58/EC  of  the  European Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  12 July 2002 
concerning  the  processing  of  personal  data  and  the  protection  of  privacy  in  the 
electronic 
electronic 
communications)8 (hereinafter together referred to as ‘the 2002 regulatory framework 
for  electronic  communications’)  aim  to create  an  internal  market  for  electronic 
communications within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ while ensuring a high level of 
consumer protection through enhanced competition. 

(Directive  on  privacy 

communications 

sector 

and 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 4 (adapted) 

This  Regulation  ⌦ (EC)  No  717/2007 ⌫  is  not  an  isolated  measure,  but 
complements  and  supports,  insofar  as  Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming 
is concerned, the rules provided for by the 2002 regulatory framework for electronic 
communications. That framework has not provided national regulatory authorities with 
sufficient  tools  to  take  effective  and  decisive  action  with  regard  to  the  pricing  of 
roaming  services  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  and  thus  fails  to  ensure  the 

OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 7. 
OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 21. 
OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 33. 
OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 51. 
OJ L 201,  31.7.2002,  p. 37.  Directive  as  amended  by  Directive  2006/24/EC  (OJ L 105,  13.4.2006, 
p. 54). 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

4 
5 
6 
7 
8 

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(6) 

(7) 

smooth  functioning  of  the  internal  market  for  roaming  services.  This  Regulation 
⌦ (EC) No 717/2007 ⌫ is an appropriate means of correcting this situation. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 5 (adapted) 

The 2002 regulatory framework for electronic communications draws on the principle 
that ex ante regulatory obligations should only be imposed where there is not effective 
competition,  providing  for  a  process  of  periodic  market  analysis  and  review  of 
obligations  by  national  regulatory  authorities,  leading  to  the  imposition  of  ex  ante 
obligations on operators designated as having significant market power. The elements 
constituting this process include the definition of relevant markets in accordance with 
the  Commission's  Recommendation9  on  relevant  product  and  service  markets  within 
the electronic communications sector susceptible to ex ante regulation in  accordance 
with  Directive 2002/21/EC10  (hereinafter  referred  to  as  ‘the  Recommendation’),  the 
analysis  of  the  defined  markets  in  accordance  with  the  Commission's  guidelines  on 
market analysis and the assessment of significant market power under the Community 
⌦ Union ⌫  regulatory  framework  for  electronic  communications  networks  and 
services11,  the  designation  of  operators  with  significant  market  power  and  the 
imposition of ex ante obligations on operators so designated. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 6 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

The  Recommendation  identifies ⌦ identified ⌫  as  a  relevant  market  susceptible  to 
ex  ante  regulation  the  wholesale  national market  for  international  roaming  on  public 
mobile  networks.  However,  the  work  undertaken  by  the  national  regulatory 
authorities, (both individually and within the European Regulators Group) ⌦ (ERG) 
and  its  successor  the  Body  of  European  Regulators  for  Electronic  Communications 
(BEREC) established by Regulation (EC) No 1211/2009 of the European Parliament 
and of the Council12, ⌫ in analysing the wholesale national markets for international 
roaming  has  demonstrated  that  it  has  not  yet  been  possible  for  a  national  regulatory 
authority  to  address  effectively  the  high  level  of  wholesale  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  charges  because  of 
identifying 
undertakings  with  significant  market  power  in  view  of  the  specific  circumstances  of 
international  roaming,  including  its  cross-border  nature. ⌦ Following  the  entry  into 
force of Regulation (EC) No 717/2007, the roaming market was withdrawn from the 
revised Recommendation13. ⌫ 

the  difficulty 

in 

As  regards  the  retail  provision  of  international  roaming  services,  the  Recommendation  does 
not  identify  any  retail  market  for  international  roaming  as  a  relevant  market,  owing  among 
other  things  to  the  fact  that  international  roaming  services  at  retail  level  are  not  purchased 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 7 

9 
10 
11 
12 
13 

OJ L 114, 8.5.2003, p. 45. 
OJ L 114, 8.5.2003, p. 45. 
OJ C 165, 11.7.2002, p. 6. 
OJ L 337, 18.12.2009, p. 1.  
OJ L 344/65 28.12.2007, [unclear reference, please redrart] 

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independently  but  constitute  only  one  element  of  a  broader  retail  package  purchased  by 
customers from their home provider. 

(8) 

(9) 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 8 

In  addition,  the  national  regulatory  authorities  responsible  for  safeguarding  and 
promoting the interests of mobile customers normally resident within their territory are 
not  able  to control  the  behaviour  of  the  operators  of  the  visited  network,  situated  in 
other  Member States,  on  whom  those  customers  depend  when  using  international 
roaming  services.  This  obstacle  could  also  diminish  the  effectiveness  of  measures 
taken  by  Member  States  based  on  their  residual  competence  to  adopt  consumer 
protection rules. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 9 

Accordingly, there is pressure for Member States to take measures to address the level 
of  international  roaming  charges,  but  the  mechanism  for  ex  ante  regulatory 
intervention  by  national  regulatory  authorities  provided  by  the  2002  regulatory 
framework  for  electronic  communications  has  not  proved  sufficient  to  enable  those 
authorities to act decisively in the consumers' interest in this specific area. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 10 (adapted) 

(10)  Furthermore, 

the  European  Parliament 

resolution  on  European  electronic 
communications regulation and markets 200414 called on the Commission to develop 
new initiatives to reduce the high costs of cross-border mobile telephone traffic, while 
the  European  Council  of  23  and  24 March 2006  concluded  that  focused,  effective 
and integrated  information  and communication  technology  (ICT)  policies  both  at 
European and national level are essential to achieving the renewed Lisbon Strategy's 
goals  of  economic  growth  and  productivity  and  noted  in  this  context  the  importance 
for competitiveness of reducing roaming charges. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 11 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(11)  The  2002  regulatory  framework  for  electronic  communications,  on  the  basis  of 
considerations  apparent  at  that  time,  was  aimed  at  removing  all  barriers  to  trade 
between  Member  States  in  the  area  that  it  harmonised,  inter  alia,  measures  which 
affect  roaming  charges.  However,  this  should  not  prevent  the  adaptation  of 
harmonised rules in step with other considerations in order to find the most effective 
means  of  achieving  a  high  level  of  consumer  protection  whilst  improving  the 
conditions  for  the  functioning  of(cid:214) enhancing  competition  in   the  internal  market 
⌦ for roaming services and achieving a high level of consumer protection ⌫ . 

14 

OJ C 285 E, 22.11.2006, p. 143. 

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(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 12 (adapted) 

(12)  The  2002  regulatory  framework  for  electronic  communications,  in  particular  the 
Framework Directive, should therefore be amended to allow for a departure from the 
rules  otherwise  applicable,  namely  that  prices  for  service  offerings  should  be 
determined by commercial agreement in the absence of significant market power, and 
to  thereby  accommodate  the  introduction  of  complementary  regulatory  obligations 
which  reflect  the  specific  characteristics  of  Community-wide  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ 
roaming services.  

(13)  The retail and wholesale roaming markets exhibit unique characteristics which justify 
exceptional measures which go beyond the mechanisms otherwise available under the 
2002 regulatory framework for electronic communications. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 13 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 14 

Regulatory  obligations  should  be  imposed  at  both  retail  and  wholesale  level  to  protect  the 
interests  of  roaming  customers,  since  experience  has  shown  that  reductions  in  wholesale 
prices for Community-wide roaming services may not be reflected in lower retail prices for 
roaming owing to the absence of incentives for this to happen. On the other hand, action to 
reduce the level of retail prices without addressing the level of the wholesale costs associated 
with  the  provision  of  these  services  could  risk  disrupting  the  orderly  functioning  of  the 
Community-wide roaming market. 

These  regulatory  obligations  should  take  effect  as  soon  as  possible,  while  providing  the 
operators  concerned  with  a  reasonable  period  to  adapt  their  prices  and  service  offerings  to 
ensure compliance, and apply directly in all Member States. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 15 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 16 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(14)  A common approach should be employed for ensuring that users of terrestrial public 
mobile  telephone  ⌦ communication ⌫  networks  when  travelling  within  the 
Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  do  not  pay  excessive  prices  for  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  services  when  making  or  receiving  voice  calls,  thereby 
achieving  a  high  level  of  consumer  protection  while  safeguarding  (cid:214) enhancing  
competition  ⌦ concerning  roaming  services ⌫  between  mobile  operators  ⌦ , 
achieving a high level of consumer protection ⌫ and preserving both incentives for 
innovation  and consumer  choice.  In  view  of  the  cross-border  nature  of  the  services 
concerned,  this  common  approach  is  needed  so  that  mobile  operators  can  operate 
within  a  single  coherent  regulatory  framework  based  on  objectively  established 
criteria. 

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(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 17 

The  most  effective  and  proportionate  approach  to  regulating  the  level  of  prices  for  making 
and  receiving  intra-Community  roaming  calls  is  the  setting  at  Community  level  of  a 
maximum average per-minute charge at wholesale level and the limiting of charges at retail 
level  through  the  introduction  of  a  Eurotariff.  The  average  wholesale  charge  should  apply 
between any pair of operators within the Community over a specified period. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 2 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(15)  ⌦ Regulation  (EC)  No  717/2007,  as  amended  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  544/2009,  is 
valid  until  30  June  2012.  Prior  to  its  expiry, ⌫  Tthe  Commission  has  carried  out  a 
review  in  accordance  with  ⌦ its ⌫  Article 11  of  Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007, 
where it was required to evaluate whether the objectives of that Regulation had been 
achieved, ⌦ and ⌫ to review developments in wholesale and retail charges for the 
provision  to  roaming  customers  of  voice  ⌦ ,  SMS ⌫  and  data  communications 
services,  including  SMS  and  MMS,  and  to  include,  if  appropriate,  recommendations 
regarding the need to regulate those services. In its report to the European Parliament 
and the Council, contained in its Communication of 23 September 2008 ⌦ [ XX June 
2011  ] ⌫  on  the  outcome  of  the  review  of  the  functioning  of  Regulation  (EC) 
No 717/2007  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  27 June  2007  on 
roaming  on  public  mobile  telephone  networks  within  the  Community  and  amending 
Directive 2002/21/EC, the Commission concluded that it was appropriate to extend the 
validity  of  Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007  ⌦ regulation  ⌫  beyond  30 June  2010 
⌦ 2012 ⌫ . 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 6 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(16)  Data  on  the  development  of  prices  for  Community-wide  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  voice 
⌦ , SMS and data ⌫ roaming services since the entry into force of Regulation (EC) 
No 717/2007  ⌦ and  its  amending  Regulation  (EC)  No  544/2009 ⌫  ,  including  in 
particular those collected by national regulatory authorities and reported on a quarterly 
basis  through  the  medium  of  the  ERG  ⌦ BEREC ⌫  ,  do  not  provide  sufficient 
evidence to suggest that competition at the retail or wholesale levels (cid:214) has reasonably 
developed and  is likely to be sustainable from June 2010 ⌦ 2012 ⌫ onwards in 
the  absence  of  regulatory  measures.  Such  data  indicates  that  retail  and  wholesale 
prices  are  clustering  ⌦ continue  to  cluster ⌫  at  or  close  to  the  limits  set  by 
Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 ⌦ as amended by Regulation (EC) No 544/2009 ⌫ , 
with only limited competition below those limits. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 7 (adapted) 

(17)  The  expiry  in  June  2010  ⌦ 2012 ⌫  of  the  regulatory  safeguards  which  apply  to 
intra-Community  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  voice  roaming  services  at  wholesale  and  retail 
levels by virtue of Regulation (EC) No 717/2009 ⌦ , as amended by Regulation (EC) 
No  544/2009, ⌫  would  therefore  give  rise  to  a  significant  risk  that  the  underlying 
lack of competitive pressures in the voice roaming market and the incentive for mobile 

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operators  to  maximise  their  roaming  revenues  would  result  in  retail  and  wholesale 
prices  for  intra-Community  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  that  do  not  constitute  a 
reasonable reflection of the underlying costs involved in the provision of the service, 
thereby  jeopardising  the  objectives  of  ⌦ this ⌫  Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007. 
Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007  ⌦ Regulatory  intervention  in  the  market  for  mobile 
roaming services ⌫ should therefore be extended beyond 30 June 2010 ⌦ 2012 ⌫ 
for  a  period  of  two  years  in  order  to  ensure  the  smooth  functioning  of  the  internal 
market  by  ⌦ allowing  competition  to  develop,  while  at  the  same  time ⌫ 
guaranteeing that consumers continue to benefit from the assurance that they will not 
be charged an excessive price, in comparison with competitive national prices, when 
making or receiving a regulated roaming call while at the same time leaving sufficient 
time for competition to develop. 

(cid:216) new 

(18) 

In order to allow for the development of a more efficient and competitive market for 
roaming  services,  there  should  be  no  restrictions  that  prevent  undertakings  from 
effectively  negotiating  wholesale  access  for  the  purpose  of  providing  roaming 
services.  However,  at  present  there  are  obstacles  to  the  access  to  such  wholesale 
roaming  services, due  to  differences  in  negotiating  power  and  in  the  degree  of 
infrastructure  ownership  of  undertakings.  The  removal  of  these  obstacles  would 
facilitate  the  development  of  alternative  and  innovative  roaming  services  and  offers 
for customers, in particular from virtual network operators. It would also facilitate the 
development of pan-European services. 

(19)  Therefore  rules  should  be  introduced  to  mandate  the  obligation  to  meet  reasonable 
requests  for  wholesale  access  to  public  mobile  communications  networks  for  the 
purpose  of  providing  roaming  services.  Such  requests  should  only  be  refused  on  the 
basis  of  objective  and  duly  substantiated  criteria,  which  should  be  determined  on  a 
case  by  case  basis  by  the  national  regulatory  authorities  following  the  dispute 
resolution procedure referred to in Article 17. In order to ensure a level playing field, 
wholesale access for the purpose of providing roaming services should be granted in 
accordance with the regulatory obligations laid down in this Regulation applicable at 
the wholesale level and should take into account the different cost elements necessary 
for  the  provision  of  such  access.  A  consistent  regulatory  approach  to  the  wholesale 
access for the provision of roaming services would avoid distortions between Member 
States.  

(20)  A  wholesale  roaming  access  obligation  should  cover  access  to  all  the  elements  and 
facilities necessary to enable the provision of roaming services, such as the following 
elements:  access  to  network  elements  and  associated  facilities;  access  to  relevant 
software systems including operational support systems; access to information systems 
or databases for pre-ordering, provisioning, ordering, maintaining and repair requests, 
and billing; access to number translation or systems offering equivalent functionality; 
access to mobile networks, and access to virtual network services. 

(21)  Mobile  communications  services  are  sold  in  bundles  including  both  domestic  and 
roaming  services  which  limits  customer  choice  for  roaming  services.  Such  bundles 
reduce  transparency  concerning  roaming  services,  since  it  is  difficult  to  compare 
individual  items  within  the  bundles.  Consequently,  competition  among  operators  on 
the basis of the roaming element in the mobile bundle is not yet apparent. Facilitating 

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the availability of roaming as a stand-alone service would address structural problems 
by raising consumer awareness of roaming prices, allowing distinct consumer choice 
concerning roaming services and thus increasing competitive pressure on the demand 
side. This will therefore contribute to the smooth functioning of the internal market for 
European roaming services. 

(22)  Consumers should have the right to opt for the separate sale of roaming services from 
their domestic mobile package. Basic principles should be laid down with regard to the 
provision  of  a  separate  sale  of  roaming  services  which  should  be  introduced  in  a 
coordinated manner across the Union. Consumers should be able to choose a different 
provider for roaming services without changing their number, and in a manner which 
ensures interoperability of services, with roaming services being provided anywhere in 
the Union and with the same level of quality. 

(23) 

(24) 

Increased  cooperation  and  coordination  among  mobile  network  operators  should  be 
established  to  technically  enable  the  provision  of  separate  roaming  services,  and  to 
ensure  coordinated  and  sound  technical  evolution  of  the  separate  sale  of  roaming 
services  in  the  Union.  Therefore,  guidelines  detailing  further  the  relevant  basic 
principles  and  methodologies  should  be  elaborated,  in  order  to  allow  a  rapid 
adaptation  to  changed  circumstances  and  technological  advancement.  BEREC,  in 
coordination with the Commission and in collaboration with the relevant stakeholders, 
should  issue  guidelines  to  develop  the  technical  elements  of  a  facility  to  enable  the 
separate  sale  of  roaming  services.  The  Commission  could  give  a  mandate  to  a 
European Standardisation Body for the amendment of the relevant standards that are 
necessary for the harmonised implementation of the facility. 

It is considered that for the separate sale of roaming services to be fully effective, it 
needs  to  be  combined  with  the  wholesale  access  obligation  for  the  provision  of 
roaming services to facilitate market entry by new or existing players including cross-
border  roaming  services  providers.  This  solution  will  avoid  distortions  between 
Member  States  by  ensuring  a  consistent  regulatory  approach  thereby  contributing  to 
the development of the single market. However, this solution in roaming services will 
require a reasonable period for operators to adapt at the technical level, and therefore 
will only result in a genuine internal market with sufficient competition after a certain 
period of time. For this reason, price caps for the wholesale charges for  voice, SMS 
messages and data roaming services as well as safeguard caps for those service at the 
retail level should be maintained on a temporary basis at an appropriate level to ensure 
that  the  existing  consumer  benefits  are  preserved  during  a  transitional  period  of 
implementation of such structural solutions, after which they could be removed 

(25)  With  regard  to  continuation  of  temporary  price  regulation,  regulatory  obligations 
should be imposed at both retail and wholesale level to protect the interests of roaming 
customers, since experience has shown that reductions in wholesale prices for Union-
wide roaming services may not be reflected in lower retail prices for roaming owing to 
the absence of incentives for this to happen. On the other hand, action to reduce the 
level  of  retail  prices  without  addressing  the  level  of  the  wholesale  costs  associated 
with the provision of these services could risk disrupting the orderly functioning of the 
Union-wide roaming market and would not allow a higher degree of competition. 

(26)  Until  the  structural  solutions  have  brought  sufficient  competition  in  the  roaming 
market, the most effective and proportionate approach to regulating the level of prices 
for making and receiving intra-Union roaming calls is the setting at Union level of a 

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maximum average per-minute charge at wholesale level and the limiting of charges at 
retail  level  through  the  Eurotariff  introduced  in  Regulation  (EC)  No  717/2007.  The 
average wholesale charge should apply between any pair of operators within the Union 
over a specified period. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 18 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(27)  The ⌦ transitory ⌫  Eurotariff  should  be  set  at  a ⌦ safeguard ⌫  level  which  (cid:214) , 
whilst ensuring that the existing consumer benefits are preserved during a transitional 
period  of  implementing  the  structural  solutions,   guarantees  a  sufficient  margin  to 
operators and encourages competitive roaming offerings at lower rates. (cid:214) During the 
period concerned,  Ooperators should actively offer a Eurotariff to all their roaming 
customers, free of charge, and in a clear and transparent manner. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 19 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(28)  This  regulatory  approach  should  ensure  that  retail  charges  for  Community-wide 
roaming provide a more reasonable reflection of the underlying costs involved in the 
provision  of  the  service  than  has  been  the  case.  The  maximum  ⌦ transitory ⌫ 
Eurotariff that may (cid:214) to  be offered to roaming customers should therefore reflect a 
reasonable  margin  over  the  wholesale  cost  of  providing  a  roaming  service,  whilst 
allowing  operators  the  freedom  to compete  by  differentiating  their  offerings  and 
adapting  their  pricing  structures  to  market  conditions  and consumer  preferences. 
(cid:214) Such  safeguard  caps  should  be  set  at  levels  which  do  not  distort  the  competitive 
benefits  of  structural  solutions  and  could  be  removed  once  the  structural  solutions 
have  had  an  opportunity  to  deliver  concrete  gains  for  customers.   This  regulatory 
approach should not apply to value added services. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 20 (adapted) 

(29)  This  regulatory  approach  should  be  simple  to implement  and  monitor  in  order  to 
minimise  the  administrative  burden  both  for  the  operators  which  are  affected  by  its 
requirements  and  for  the  national  regulatory  authorities  charged  with  its  supervision 
and enforcement. It should also be transparent and immediately understandable to all 
mobile  customers  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  .  Furthermore  it  should 
provide  certainty  and  predictability  to  operators  providing  wholesale  and  retail 
roaming services. The level in monetary terms of the maximum per-minute charges at 
wholesale and retail level should therefore be specified in this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 21 (adapted) 

(30)  The maximum average per-minute charge at wholesale level so specified should take 
account  of  the  different  elements  involved  in  the  making  of  a  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫ roaming call, in particular the cost of originating and terminating 
calls over mobile networks and including overheads, signalling and transit. The most 
appropriate  benchmark  for  call  origination  and  for  call  termination  is  the  average 
the  Community 
mobile 
⌦ Union ⌫,  based  on  information  provided  by  the  national  regulatory  authorities 

termination  rate  for  mobile  network  operators 

in 

EN 

9 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
and  published  by  the  Commission.  The  maximum  average  per-minute  charge 
established by this Regulation should therefore be determined taking into account the 
average mobile termination rate, which offers a benchmark for the costs involved. The 
maximum  average  per-minute  charge  at  wholesale  level  should  decrease  annually  to 
take account of reductions in mobile termination rates imposed by national regulatory 
authorities from time to time. 

(31)  The  ⌦ transitory ⌫  Eurotariff  applicable  at  retail  level  should  provide  roaming 
customers  with  the  assurance  that  they  will  not  be  charged  an  excessive  price  when 
making  or  receiving  a  regulated  roaming  call,  whilst  leaving  the  home  operators 
sufficient margin to differentiate the products they offer to customers. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 22 (adapted) 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 23 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(32)  (cid:214) During the transitional period of safeguard caps,  Aall consumers should have the 
option of choosing without additional charges or preconditions a simple roaming tariff 
which will not exceed regulated rates. A reasonable margin between wholesale costs 
and retail prices should ensure that operators cover all their specific roaming costs at 
retail level including appropriate shares of marketing costs and handset subsidies and 
are  left  with  an  adequate  residual  to  yield  a  reasonable  return.  A  ⌦ transitory ⌫ 
Eurotariff is an appropriate  means  to provide  both  the consumer with protection  and 
the  operator  with  flexibility.  In  line  with  the  wholesale  level  the  maximum  levels  of 
the Eurotariff should decrease annually. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 24 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(33)  (cid:214) During  the  transitional  period  of  safeguard  caps,   Nnew  roaming  customers 
should  be  fully  informed  of  the  range  of  tariffs  that  exist  for  roaming  within  the 
Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  ,  including  the  tariffs  which  are  compliant  with  the 
⌦ transitory ⌫  Eurotariff.  Existing  roaming  customers  should  be  given  the 
opportunity  to choose  a  new  tariff  compliant  with  the ⌦ transitory ⌫  Eurotariff  or 
any other roaming tariff within a certain time frame. For existing roaming customers 
who have not made their choice within this time frame, it is appropriate to distinguish 
between those who had already opted for a specific roaming tariff or package before 
the  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation  and  those  who  had  not.  The  latter  should  be 
automatically accorded a tariff that complies with this Regulation. Roaming customers 
who  already  benefit  from  specific  roaming  tariffs  or  packages  which  suit  their 
individual  requirements  and  which  they  have  chosen  on  that  basis  should  remain  on 
their  previously  selected  tariff  or  package  if,  after  having  been  reminded  of  their 
current tariff conditions, they fail to express a choice within the relevant time period. 
Such  specific  roaming  tariffs  or  packages  could  include,  for  example,  roaming  flat-
rates, non-public tariffs, tariffs with additional fixed roaming charges, tariffs with per-
minute charges lower than the maximum Eurotariff or tariffs with set-up charges.  

EN 

10 

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Providers of retail Community-wide roaming services should have a period within which to 
adjust their prices to comply with the limits laid down in this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 25 

Similarly,  providers  of  wholesale  Community-wide  roaming  services  should  have  an 
adaptation period to comply with the limits laid down in this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 26 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 27 (adapted) 

(34)  Since  this  Regulation  provides  that  the  Directives  making  up  the  2002  regulatory 
framework  for  electronic  communications  are  without  prejudice  to  any  specific 
measure  adopted  for  the  regulation  of  Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming 
charges  for  mobile  voice  telephony  calls,  and  since  providers  of  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  services  may  be  required  by  this  Regulation  to  make 
changes to their retail roaming tariffs in order to comply with the requirements of this 
Regulation,  such  changes  should  not  trigger  for  mobile  customers  any  right  under 
national 
for  electronic 
communications to withdraw from their contracts. 

transposing 

framework 

the  2002 

regulatory 

laws 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 28 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(35)  This Regulation should not prejudice innovative offers to consumers which are more 
advantageous  than  the  maximum  ⌦ transitory ⌫  Eurotariff  as  defined  in  this 
Regulation,  but  rather  should  encourage  innovative  offers  to  roaming  customers  at 
lower rates (cid:214) in particular in response to the additional competitive pressure created 
by  the  structural  provisions  of  this  Regulation   .  This  Regulation  does  not  require 
roaming  charges  to  be  reintroduced  in  cases  where  they  have  been  abolished 
altogether, nor does it require existing roaming charges to be increased to the level of 
the ⌦ transitional safeguard ⌫ limits set out in this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 12 (adapted) 

(36)  Where charge limits are not denominated in euro, the applicable charge limits for the 
initial limits and the revised values of those limits should be determined in the relevant 
currency by applying the reference exchange rates published in the Official Journal of 
the  European  Union  on  the  dates  specified  in  this  Regulation.  Where  there  is  no 
publication  on  the  date  specified,  the  applicable  reference  exchange  rates  should  be 
those published in the first Official Journal of the European Union following that date 
and containing such reference exchange rates. 

(37)  The  practice  by  some  mobile  network  operators  of  billing  for  the  provision  of 
wholesale  roaming  calls  on  the  basis  of  minimum  charging  periods  of  up  to  60 
seconds,  as  opposed  to  the  per  second  basis  normally  applied  for  other  wholesale 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 14 (adapted) 

EN 

11 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
interconnection  charges,  creates  a  distortion  of  competition  between  these  operators 
and those applying different billing methods and undermines the consistent application 
of the wholesale price limits introduced by ⌦ this ⌫ Regulation (EC) No 717/2007. 
Moreover it represents an additional charge which, by increasing wholesale costs, has 
negative consequences for the pricing of voice roaming services at retail level. Mobile 
operators should therefore be required to bill for the wholesale provision of regulated 
roaming calls on a per second basis. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 18 (adapted) 

(38)  The  ERG ⌦ ,  the  predecessor  of  the  BEREC, ⌫  has  estimated  that  the  practice  of 
mobile operators of using charging intervals of more than one second when billing for 
roaming  services  at  retail  level  has  added  24  %  to  a  typical  Eurotariff  bill  for  calls 
made  and  19  %  for  calls  received.  They  also  stated  that  these  increases  represent  a 
form  of  hidden  charge  since  they  are  not  transparent  to  most  consumers.  For  this 
reason, the ERG recommended urgent action to address the different billing practices 
at retail level applied to the Eurotariff. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 19 (adapted) 

(39)  While  Regulation  (EC)  No  717/2007,  by  introducing  a  Eurotariff  in  the  Community 
⌦ Union ⌫  ,  established  a  common  approach  to  ensuring  that  roaming  customers 
are  not  charged  excessive  prices  for  regulated  roaming  calls,  the  different  billing 
unitisation practices employed by mobile operators seriously undermines its consistent 
application.  This  also  means  that,  despite  the  Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  , 
cross-border  nature  of  intra-Community  ⌦ intra-Union ⌫  roaming  services,  there 
are  divergent  approaches  in  relation  to  the  billing  of  regulated  roaming  calls  which 
distort competitive conditions in the single market. 

(40)  A  common  set  of  rules  regarding  unitisation  of  Eurotariff  bills  at  retail  level  should 
therefore  be  introduced  in  order  to  further  strengthen  the  single  market  and  provide 
throughout the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ a common level of protection to consumers 
of Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ roaming services. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 20 (adapted) 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 21 

(41)  Providers of regulated roaming calls at the retail level should therefore be required to 
bill their customers on a per second basis for all calls subject to a Eurotariff, subject 
only to the possibility to apply a minimum initial charging period of no more than 30 
seconds for calls made. This will enable operators to cover any reasonable set-up costs 
and to provide flexibility to  compete by offering shorter  minimum charging periods. 
However, no minimum initial charging period is justified in the case of Eurotariff calls 
received,  as  the  underlying  wholesale  cost  is  charged  on  a  per  second  basis  and  any 
specific set-up costs are already covered by mobile termination rates. 

EN 

12 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
(42)  Customers  should  not  have  to  pay  for  receiving  voice  mail  messages  in  a  visited 
network, as they cannot control the duration of such messages. This should be without 
prejudice to other applicable voice mail charges, for example charges for listening to 
such messages. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 22 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 24 (adapted) 

(43)  ⌦ With  regard  to  SMS  roaming  services, ⌫  Just  as  is  the  case  for  voice  roaming 
calls,  there  is  a  significant  risk  that  imposing  wholesale  pricing  obligations  alone 
would not result automatically in lower rates for retail customers. On the other hand, 
action to reduce the level of retail prices without addressing the level of the wholesale 
costs  associated  with  the  provision  of  these  services  could  prejudice  the  position  of 
some operators, in particular smaller operators, by increasing the risk of price squeeze. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 25 

(44)  Furthermore, because of the particular structure of the roaming market and its cross-
border  nature,  the  2002  regulatory  framework  has  not  provided  national  regulatory 
authorities  with  suitable  tools  to  address  effectively  the  competitive  problems 
underlying  the  high  level  of  wholesale  and  retail  prices  for  regulated  roaming  SMS 
services. This fails to ensure the smooth functioning of the internal market and should 
be corrected. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 27 
(cid:214) new 

(45)  Regulatory obligations should therefore be imposed with regard to regulated roaming 
SMS services at wholesale level, in order to establish a more reasonable relationship 
between  wholesale  charges  and  the  underlying  costs  of  provision,  and  at  retail  level 
(cid:214) for a transitional period  to protect the interests of roaming customers (cid:214) until the 
structural solution becomes effective . 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 29 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(46)  (cid:214) Until  the  structural  solution  have  brought  sufficient  competition  in  the  roaming 
market,   Tthe  most  effective  and  proportionate  approach  to  regulating  the  level  of 
prices  for  regulated  roaming  SMS  messages  at  wholesale  level  is  the  setting  at 
Community ⌦ Union ⌫  level  of  a  maximum  average  charge  per  SMS  sent  from  a 
visited  network.  The  average  wholesale  charge  should  apply  between  any  pair  of 
mobile operators within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ over a specified period. 

(47)  The wholesale price limit for regulated roaming SMS should include all costs incurred 
by the provider of the wholesale service, including, inter alia, origination, transit and 
the unrecovered cost of termination of roaming SMS messages on the visited network. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 30 

EN 

13 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Wholesale  providers  of  regulated  roaming  SMS  services  should  therefore  be 
prohibited  from  introducing  a  separate  charge  for  the  termination  of  roaming  SMS 
messages  on  their  network,  in  order  to  ensure  the  consistent  application  of  the  rules 
established by this Regulation. 

(48) 

In  order  to  ensure  that  the  regulated  caps  for  wholesale  roaming  SMS  services  are 
closer  to  levels  reflecting  underlying  costs  of  provision  and  that  competition  can 
develop at the retail level, the wholesale price limits for regulated SMS should follow 
subsequent reductions.  

(cid:216) new 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 31 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(49)  ⌦ Regulation  (EC)  No  544/2009  considered  that,  in  the  absence  of  structural 
elements introducing competition in the roaming market, ⌫ Tthe most effective and 
proportionate  approach  to  regulating  the  level  of  prices  for  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  SMS  messages  at  the  retail  level  is  ⌦ was ⌫  the 
introduction of a requirement for mobile operators to offer their roaming customers a 
Euro-SMS tariff which does not exceed a specified maximum price limit. 

(50)  (cid:214) Until the structural solutions become effective,  Tthe ⌦ transitory ⌫ Euro-SMS 
tariff  should  be  set  ⌦ retained ⌫  at  a  ⌦ safeguard ⌫  level  which  (cid:214) ,  whilst 
ensuring that the existing consumer benefits are preserved,  guarantees a sufficient 
margin to operators while also more reasonably reflecting the underlying retail costs. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 32 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(51)  This regulatory approach should ensure that retail charges for regulated roaming SMS 
messages more accurately reflect the underlying costs involved in the provision of the 
service than has previously been the case. The maximum ⌦ transitory ⌫ Euro-SMS 
tariff that may be offered to roaming customers should therefore reflect a reasonable 
margin over the costs of providing a regulated roaming SMS service, whilst allowing 
operators the freedom to compete by differentiating their offerings and adapting their 
pricing  structures  to  market  conditions  and  consumer  preferences.  (cid:214) Such  safeguard 
cap  should  be  set  at  level  which  do  not  distort  the  competitive  benefits  of  structural 
solutions and could be removed once the structural solution becomes effective.  This 
regulatory approach should not apply to value-added SMS services. 

(52)  Roaming customers should not be required to pay any additional charge for receiving 
a regulated roaming SMS or voicemail message while roaming on a visited network, 
since  such  termination  costs  are  already  compensated  by  the  retail  charge  levied  for 
the sending of a roaming SMS or voicemail message. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 33 

EN 

14 

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(53)  A  Euro-SMS  tariff  should  automatically  apply  to  any  new  or  existing  roaming 
customer  who  has  not  deliberately  chosen  or  does  not  deliberately  choose  a  special 
SMS  roaming  tariff  or  a  package  for  roaming  services  including  regulated  roaming 
SMS services. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 34 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 36 

(54)  An SMS message is a Short Message Service text message and is clearly distinct from 
other  messages  such  as  MMS  messages  or  e-mails.  In  order  to  ensure  that  the 
Regulation is not deprived of its effectiveness and that its objectives are fully met, any 
changes  to  the  technical  parameters  of  a  roaming  SMS  message  which  would 
differentiate it from a domestic SMS message should be prohibited. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 37 (adapted) 

(55)  Data  collected  by  national  regulatory  authorities  indicate  that ⌦ high  prices  for ⌫ 
average  wholesale  charges  for  data  roaming  services  levied  by  visited  network 
operators from roaming customers’ home providers ⌦ persist, even if these wholesale 
prices ⌫ appear to be on a downward trend, although high prices for wholesale data 
roaming services persist. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 45 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(56)  Moreover,  tThe  persistence  of  high  wholesale  charges  for  data  roaming  services  is 
primarily attributable to high wholesale prices charged by operators of non-preferred 
networks. Such charges are caused by traffic steering limitations which leave operators 
with no incentive to reduce their standard wholesale prices unilaterally since the traffic 
will be received irrespective of the price charged. This results in an extreme variation 
in wholesale costs. In some cases the wholesale data roaming prices applicable to non-
preferred  networks  are  30  ⌦ 6 ⌫  times  higher  than  those  applied  to  the  preferred 
network. These excessively high wholesale charges for data roaming services lead to 
appreciable distortions of competitive conditions between mobile operators within the 
Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  which  undermine  the  smooth  functioning  of  the  internal 
market.  They  also  constrain  the  ability  of  home  providers  to  predict  their  wholesale 
costs and therefore to provide their customers with transparent and competitive retail 
pricing  packages.  In  view  of  the  limitations  on  the  ability  of  national  regulatory 
authorities to deal with these problems effectively at national level, a wholesale price 
limit on data roaming services should apply. The wholesale price limit should be set at 
a  safeguard  level  well  above  the  lowest  wholesale  prices  currently  available  in  the 
market,  to  enhance  competitive  conditions  and  permit  the  development  of  a 
competitive trend in the market, while ensuring the better functioning of the internal 
market  for  the  benefit  of  consumers.  By  eliminating  the  excessive  wholesale  data 
roaming charges that persist in certain cases in the market, this safeguard level should 
prevent,  throughout  the  period  of  application  of  Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007,  the 
emergence  of  distortions  or  restrictions  on  competition  between  mobile  operators. 
(cid:214) Regulatory  obligations  should  therefore  be  imposed  with  regard  to  regulated  data 

EN 

15 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
roaming  services  at  wholesale  level,  in  order  to  establish  a  more  reasonable 
relationship between wholesale charges and the underlying costs of provision, and at 
retail level to protect the interests of roaming customers.  

(57)  Home pProviders ⌦ of roaming services ⌫ should not charge the roaming customer 
for any regulated data roaming service, unless and until the roaming customer accepts 
the provision of the service. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 39 (adapted) 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 3 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(58)  Furthermore,  the  Commission  found  that  tThe  scope  of ⌦ this ⌫  Regulation  (EC) 
No 717/2007  should  be  extended  to  cover  the  provision  within  the  Community 
⌦ Union ⌫  of  SMS  and  (cid:214) retail   data  roaming  services.  The  special 
characteristics  exhibited  by  the  international  roaming  markets,  which  justified  the 
adoption of Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 and the imposition of obligations on mobile 
operators with regard  to the provision of  Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ voice 
roaming  calls  ⌦ and  SMS  messages ⌫  ,  apply  equally  to  the  provision  of 
Community-wide  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  SMS  and  (cid:214) retail   data  roaming  services. 
Like voice roaming ⌦ and SMS ⌫ services, SMS and data roaming services are not 
purchased  independently  at  national  level  but  constitute  only  part  of  a  broader  retail 
package  purchased  by  customers  from  their  home  provider,  thereby  limiting  the 
competitive forces at play. Likewise, because of the cross-border nature of the services 
concerned, national regulatory authorities which are responsible for safeguarding and 
promoting the interests of mobile customers resident within their territory are not able 
to  control  the  behaviour  of  the  operators  of  the  visited  network,  situated  in  other 
Member States. 

(cid:216) new 

(59)  Similarly to the regulatory measures already in place for voice and SMS services, until 
the  structural  solution  brings  sufficient  competition,  the  most  effective  and 
proportionate approach to regulating the level of prices for Union-wide roaming data 
services at the retail level for a transitional period is the introduction of a requirement 
for  mobile  operators  to  offer  their  roaming  customers  a  transitory  Euro-data  tariff 
which does not exceed a specified maximum price limit. The Euro-data tariff should 
be  set  at  a  safeguard  level  which,  whilst  ensuring  consumer  protection  until  the 
structural solution becomes effective, guarantees a sufficient margin to operators while 
also more reasonably reflecting the underlying retail costs. 

(60)  The  transitory  Euro-data  tariff  that  may  be  offered  to  roaming  customers  should 
therefore  reflect  a  reasonable  margin  over  the  costs  of  providing  a  regulated  data 
roaming service, whilst allowing operators the freedom to compete by differentiating 
their offerings and adapting their pricing structures to market conditions and consumer 
preferences.  Such  safeguard  cap  should  be  set  at  levels  which  do  not  distort  the 
competitive benefits of structural solutions and could be removed once the structural 
solutions have had an opportunity to deliver concrete gains for customers. Similar to 
the  approach  followed  for  voice  and  SMS  roaming  services,  given  the  reductions 

EN 

16 

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foreseen in the underlying costs for the provision of retail data roaming services, the 
maximum  regulated  charges  for  the  transitory  Euro-data  tariff  should  follow  a 
declining glide path.  

(61)  A  transitory  Euro-data  tariff  should  automatically  apply  to  any  new  or  existing 
roaming customer who has not deliberately chosen or does not deliberately choose a 
special data roaming tariff or a package for roaming services including regulated data 
roaming services. 

(62) 

In order to ensure that consumers pay for the data services they actually consume and 
that  the  similar  problem  observed  with  voice  services  after  the  introduction  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No  717/2007  of  the  hidden  charges  for  the  consumer  due  to  the 
charging  mechanisms  applied  by  operators,  the  transitory  Euro-data  tariff  should  be 
billed on a per kilobyte basis. This is consistent with the charging mechanism already 
applicable a the wholesale level. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 29 (adapted) 

(63)  Home  providers  may  offer  a  fair-use,  all-inclusive,  monthly  flat-rate  to  which 
no charge  limits  apply.,  This  flat-rate  ⌦ which ⌫  could  cover  Community-wide 
⌦ all Union-wide ⌫ roaming voice and/or data communication services (including 
Short Message Service (SMS) and Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)) within the 
Community. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 30 (adapted) 

(64)  To ensure that all users of mobile voice telephony may benefit from the provisions of 
this  Regulation,  the  ⌦ transitory ⌫  retail  pricing  requirements  should  apply 
regardless of whether roaming customers have a pre-paid or a post-paid contract with 
their  home  provider,  and  regardless  of  whether  the  home  provider  has  its  own 
network, is a mobile virtual network operator or is a reseller of mobile voice telephony 
services. 

(cid:216) new 

(65) 

In order to ensure that regulatory obligations on wholesale and retail charges for voice, 
SMS  and  data  roaming  services  are  not  maintained  longer  than  necessary  when  the 
structural solutions are fully in place and competition is sufficiently developed in the 
roaming market, conditions should be set for non-application of maximum wholesale 
and  retail  charges  already  before  the  deadlines  foreseen.  Such  conditions  should  be 
based  on  a  significant  difference  between  price  caps  and  actual  price  levels.  It  is 
considered that a significant difference will be reached if prices have on average in the 
Union reached 75% of the price cap. For wholesale price caps the 75% criterion shall 
be based on the unbalanced traffic between operators that do not belong to the same 
group. In order to limit distortions between Member States, the 75% criterion for retail 
price caps shall be calculated by averaging at the Union level the national averages for 
each roaming service separately (voice, SMS or data).  

EN 

17 

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(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 31 (adapted) 

(66)  Where  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  providers  of  mobile  telephony  services  find  the 
benefits of interoperability and end-to-end connectivity for their customers jeopardised 
by the termination, or threat of termination, of their roaming arrangements with mobile 
network  operators  in  other  Member  States,  or  are  unable  to  provide  their  customers 
with service in another Member State as a result of a lack of agreement with at least 
one  wholesale  network  provider,  national  regulatory  authorities  should  make  use, 
where  necessary,  of  the  powers  under  Article 5  of  the  Access  Directive  to  ensure 
adequate  access  and interconnection 
to  guarantee  such  end-to-end 
connectivity and the interoperability of services, taking into account the objectives of 
Article 8 of the Framework Directive, in particular the creation of a fully functioning 
single market for electronic communications services. 

in  order 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 32 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(67) 

In  order  to improve  the  transparency  of  retail  prices  for  making  and  receiving 
regulated  roaming  calls  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  and  to  help  roaming 
customers  make  decisions  on  the  use  of  their  mobile  telephones  while  abroad, 
providers of mobile telephony services should enable their roaming customers easily 
to obtain information free of charge on the roaming charges applicable to them when 
making or receiving voice calls in a visited Member State. Moreover, providers should 
give their customers, on request and free of charge, additional information on the per-
minute or per-unit data charges (including VAT) for the making or receiving of voice 
calls  and  also  for  the  sending  and  receiving  of  SMS,  MMS  and  other  data 
communication services in the visited Member State. (cid:214) Since certain customer groups 
might be well informed about roaming charges operators should provide a possibility 
to easily opt-out from this automatic message service.  

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 33 
(cid:214) new 

(68)  Transparency also requires that providers furnish information on roaming charges, in 
particular on the Eurotariff and the all-inclusive flat-rate should they offer one, when 
subscriptions are taken out and each time there is a change in roaming charges. Home 
providers should provide information on roaming charges by appropriate means such 
as  invoices,  the  internet,  TV  advertisements  or  direct  mail.  Home  providers  should 
ensure that all their roaming customers are aware of the availability of regulated tariffs 
(cid:214) for the period concerned  and should send a clear and unbiased communication to 
these customers describing the conditions of the Eurotariff and the right to switch to 
and from it. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 40 (adapted) 

(69)  However  ⌦ Moreover ⌫,  measures  should  be 

the 
transparency  of  retail  prices  for  data  roaming  services,  in  particular  to  eliminate  the 
problem  of  ‘bill  shock’  which  constitutes  a  barrier  to  the  smooth  functioning  of  the 
internal market, and to provide roaming customers with the tools they need to monitor 

introduced 

improve 

to 

EN 

18 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
and  control  their  expenditure  on  data  roaming  services.  Equally,  there  should  be  no 
obstacles  to  the  emergence  of  applications or  technologies  which  can  be  a  substitute 
for,  or  alternative  to,  roaming  services,  such  as  WiFi,  Voice  over  Internet  Protocol 
(VoIP)  and  Instant  Messaging  services.  Consumers  should  be  provided  with  this 
information, thereby allowing them to make an informed choice. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 41 

(70) 

In  particular,  mobile  operators  should  provide  their  roaming  customers  with 
personalised  tariff  information  on  the  charges  applicable  to  those  customers  for  data 
roaming  services  every  time  they  initiate  a  data  roaming  service  on  entering  another 
Member State. This information should be delivered to their mobile telephone or other 
mobile device in the manner best suited to its easy receipt and comprehension. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 42 

(71) 

In order to facilitate customers’ understanding of the financial consequences of the use 
of  regulated  data  roaming  services  and  to  permit  them  to  monitor  and  control  their 
expenditure,  the  home  provider  should  give  examples  for  data  roaming  applications, 
such  as  e-mail,  picture  and  web-browsing,  by  indicating  their  approximate  size  in 
terms of data usage. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 43 

(72) 

In addition, in order to avoid bill shocks, mobile operators should define one or more 
maximum  financial  and/or  volume  limits  for  their  outstanding  charges  for  data 
roaming services, expressed in the currency in which the roaming customer is billed, 
and  which  they  should  offer  to  all  their  roaming  customers,  free  of  charge,  with  an 
appropriate  notification  when  this  limit  is  being  approached.  Upon  reaching  this 
maximum limit, customers should no longer receive and be charged for those services 
unless  they  specifically  request  continued  provision  of  those  services  in  accordance 
with the terms and conditions set out in the notification. Roaming customers should be 
given  the  opportunity  to  opt  for  any  of  these  maximum  financial  or  volume  limits 
within  a  reasonable  period  or  to  choose  not  to  have  such  a  limit.  Unless  customers 
state otherwise, they should be put on a default limit system. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 44 

(73)  These  transparency  measures  should  be  seen  as  minimum  safeguards  for  roaming 
customers, and should not preclude mobile operators from offering their customers a 
range  of  other  facilities  which  help  them  to  predict  and  control  their  expenditure  on 
data roaming services. For example, many operators are developing new retail flat rate 
roaming offers which permit data roaming for a specified price over a specified period 
up to a ‘fair use’ volume limit. Likewise operators are developing systems to enable 
their  roaming  customers  to  be  updated  on  a  real-time  basis  on  their  accumulated 
outstanding  data  roaming  charges.  To  ensure  the  smooth  functioning  of  the  internal 
market,  these  developments  on  the  domestic  markets  should  be  reflected  in  the 
harmonised rules. 

EN 

19 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
(cid:216) new 

(74)  However, since the entry into force of the amendments introduced by Regulation (EC) 
No  544/2009,  it  has  been  observed  that  it  is  less  probable  that  customers  under  pre-
paid tariffs suffer from "bill shocks" for the use of data roaming services, given that 
the  amount  of  credit  available  is  already  chosen  in  advance.  In  addition,  with  the 
transitory  Euro-data  tariff  with  regulated  rates  for  data  roaming  charges,  these 
consumers  will  also  benefit  from  additional  protection  against  high  prices  for  these 
services. For these reasons, the cut off limit provisions should not apply to customers 
under pre-paid contracts. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 34 (adapted) 

(75)  The national regulatory authorities which are responsible for carrying out tasks under 
the 2002 regulatory framework for electronic communications should have the powers 
needed  to  supervise  and  enforce  the  obligations  under  this  Regulation  within  their 
territory.  They  should  also  monitor  developments  in  the  pricing  of  voice  and  data 
services  for  mobile  customers  when  roaming  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫ 
including,  where  appropriate,  the  specific  costs  related  to  roaming  calls  made  and 
received  in  the  outermost  regions  of  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  and  the  need  to 
ensure that these costs can be adequately recovered on the wholesale market, and that 
traffic steering techniques are not used to limit choice to the detriment of customers. 
They should ensure that up-to-date information on the application of this Regulation is 
made  available  to interested  parties  and  publish  the  results  of  such  monitoring  every 
six  months.  Information  should  be  provided  on  corporate,  post-paid  and  pre-paid 
customers separately. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 35 (adapted) 

(76) 

In-country  roaming  in  the  outermost  regions  of  the  Community ⌦ Union ⌫  where 
mobile  telephony  licences  are  distinct  from  those  issued  in  respect  of  the  rest  of  the 
national  territory  could  benefit  from  rate  reductions  equivalent  to  those  practised  on 
the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ roaming market. The implementation of this Regulation 
should not give rise to less favourable pricing treatment for customers using in-country 
roaming services as opposed to customers using Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ 
roaming  services.  To  this  end,  the  national  authorities  may  take  additional  measures 
consistent with Community ⌦ Union ⌫ law. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that,  in  addition  to voice  telephony,  new  mobile  data  communication 
services  are  gaining  ever  more  ground,  this  Regulation  should  make  it  possible  to  monitor 
market developments in those services too. The Commission, therefore, should also monitor 
the market for roaming data communication services, including SMS and MMS. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 36 

(77)  Member States should provide for a system of penalties to be applied in the event of 

breach of this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 37 

EN 

20 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 38 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(78)  Since  the  objectives  of  this  Regulation,  namely  to  establish  a  common  approach  to 
ensure  that  users  of  public  mobile  telephone  networks  when  travelling  within  the 
Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  do  not  pay  excessive  prices  for  Community-wide 
⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  services  when  making  or  receiving  voice  calls,  thereby 
achieving a high level of consumer protection while safeguarding (cid:214) by enhancing  
competition between mobile operators, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member 
States in a secure, harmonised and timely manner and can therefore be better achieved 
at  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  level,  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  may  adopt 
measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the 
Treaty  ⌦ on  European  Union ⌫ 
the  principle  of 
proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is 
necessary in order to achieve those objectives. 

.  In  accordance  with 

(cid:216) new 

(79)  Regulatory  obligations  on  wholesale  charges  for  voice,  SMS  and  data  roaming 
services should be maintained until the structural solutions has become effective and 
competition  in  the  wholesale  markets  has  sufficiently  developed.  In  addition,  market 
trends currently show that data services will  progressively  become  the  most  relevant 
segment of mobile services, and wholesale data roaming services currently exhibit the 
highest level of dynamism, with prices reasonably below the current regulated rates.  

(80)  Retail safeguard caps should be set at sufficiently high levels which do not distort the 
potential competitive benefits of structural solutions and could be removed completely 
once the structural approaches becomes effective and have enabled the development of 
a  genuine  single  market.  Therefore,  retail  safeguard  caps  should  follow  a  downward 
trend and subsequently expire.  

(cid:208) 717/2007 recital 39 (adapted) 

This common approach should be established for a limited time period. This Regulation may, 
in the light of a review to be carried out by the Commission, be extended or amended. The 
Commission should review the effectiveness of this Regulation and the contribution which it 
makes to the implementation of the regulatory framework and the smooth functioning of the 
internal  market  and  also  examine  the  impact  of  this  Regulation  on  the  smaller  mobile 
telephony  providers  in  the  Community  and  their  position  in  the  Community-wide  roaming 
market, 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 49 (adapted) 

(81)  The  Commission  should  review  the  effectiveness  of  ⌦ this ⌫  Regulation  (EC) 
No 717/2007  as  amended  by  this  Regulation  in  light  of  its  objectives  and  the 
contribution  to  the  implementation  of  the  regulatory  framework  and  the  smooth 
functioning of the internal market. In this context, the Commission should consider the 
impact  on  the  competitive  position  of  mobile  communications  providers  of  different 
sizes  and  from  different  parts  of  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  ,  the  developments, 

EN 

21 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
trends and transparency in retail and wholesale charges, their relation to actual costs, 
the extent to which the assumptions made in the impact assessment that accompanied 
this Regulation have been confirmed and the costs of compliance of operators and the 
impact on the investments. The Commission should also, in the light of technological 
developments, consider the availability and quality of services which are an alternative 
to roaming (such as VoIP ⌦ access through WIFI ⌫ ). 

(cid:208) 544/2009 recital 50 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

(82)  Prior to the abovementioned review, and in order to ensure the continuous monitoring 
of roaming services in the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ , the Commission should prepare 
an  interim  report  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  (cid:214) every  two  years  
which  includes  a  general  summary  of  the  latest  trends  in  roaming  services  and  an 
intermediary  assessment  of  the  progress  towards  achieving  the  objectives  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No 717/2007  as  amended  by  this  Regulation  and  of  the  possible 
alternative options for achieving these objectives. 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 1 

Subject matter and scope 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.2(a) (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

1.  This  Regulation  introduces  a  common  approach  to  ensuring  that  users  of  public  mobile 
communications  networks  when  travelling  within  the  Community ⌦ Union ⌫  do  not  pay 
excessive  prices  for  Community-wide  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫  roaming  services  in  comparison 
with  competitive  national  prices,  when  making  calls  and  receiving  calls,  when  sending  and 
receiving  SMS  messages  and  when  using  packet  switched  data  communication  services, 
thereby contributing to the smooth functioning of the internal market while achieving a high 
level  of  consumer  protection,  fostering  competition  and  transparency  in  the  market  and 
offering both incentives for innovation and consumer choice. 

(cid:214) It lays down rules to guarantee the separate sale of roaming services from domestic mobile 
communications services and the conditions for wholesale access to public mobile telephone 
networks  for  the  purpose  of  provision  of  roaming  services.   It  ⌦ also ⌫  lays  down 
⌦ transitory ⌫  rules  on  the  charges  that  may  be  levied  by  mobile  operators  for  the 
provision of Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ roaming services for voice calls and SMS 
messages  originating  and  terminating  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  and  for  packet 
switched data communication services used by roaming customers while roaming on a mobile 
communications network in another Member State. It applies both to charges levied between 
network  operators  at  wholesale  level  and,  where  appropriate,  to  charges  levied  by  home 
providers at retail level. 

EN 

22 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
2. This Regulation also lays down rules aimed at increasing price transparency and improving 
the  provision  of  information  on  charges  to  users  of  Community-wide  ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ 
roaming services. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 

3.  This  Regulation  constitutes  a  specific  measure  within  the  meaning  of  Article 1(5)  of  the 
Framework Directive. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.2(b) 
(cid:214) new 

4. The charge limits set out in this Regulation are expressed in euro. Where charges governed 
by  Articles 3,  4,  4a  and  4b  and  Article  6a(3)  and  (4)  6,  7,  8,  9,  (cid:214) 11  and12  are 
denominated  in  other  currencies,  the  initial  limits  pursuant  to  those  Articles  shall  be 
determined  in  those  currencies,  in  the  case  of  Articles 3  and 4  by  applying  the  reference 
exchange  rates  prevailing  on  30 June  2007,  and  in  the  case  of  Articles 4a  and 4b  and 
Article 6a(3) and (4) by applying the reference exchange rates published on 6 May 2009 (cid:214) 30 
May 2012  by the European Central Bank in the Official Journal of the European Union. 

For the purposes of the subsequent reductions in those limits provided for in Articles 36(2), 
47(2)  and 6a(4)  (cid:214) ,  8(1),  11(1)  and  12(2)   ,  the  revised  values  shall  be  determined  by 
applying the reference exchange rates so published one month preceding the date from which 
the  revised  values  apply.  The  same  reference  exchange  rates  shall  be  applied  to  revise 
annually  the  value  of  the  charges  governed  by  Articles 4a  and 4b  and  Article 6a(3)  where 
these charges are denominated in currencies other than the euro. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 2 

Definitions 

1.  For  the  purposes  of  this  Regulation,  the  definitions  set  out  in  Article 2  of  the 
Access Directive,  Article 2  of  the  Framework  Directive,  and  Article 2  of  the  Universal 
Service Directive shall apply. 

2.  In  addition  to  the  definitions  referred  to in  paragraph 1,  the  following  definitions  shall 
apply: 

(a) 

‘Eurotariff’  means  any  tariff  not  exceeding  the  maximum  charge,  provided  for  in 
Article 47, which a home provider may levy for the provision of regulated roaming 
calls in compliance with that Article; 

EN 

23 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(a) (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

‘home  provider’  means  an  undertaking  that  provides  a  roaming  customer  with 
(cid:214) Union-wide  roaming  services  
terrestrial  public  mobile  communications 
services  either  via  its  own  network  or  as  a  mobile  virtual  network  operator  or 
reseller; 

‘home  network’  means  a  terrestrial  public  mobile  communications  network  located 
within a Member State and used by a home provider for the provision of terrestrial 
public mobile communications services to a roaming customer; 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(a) (adapted) 

‘Community-wide ⌦ Union-wide ⌫ roaming’ means the use of a mobile telephone 
or other device by a roaming customer to make or receive intra-Community ⌦ intra- 
Union ⌫  calls,  to  send  or  receive  SMS  messages,  or  to  use  packet  switched  data 
communications,  while  in  a  Member  State  other  than  that  in  which  that  customer's 
home  network  is  located,  by  means  of  arrangements  between  the  operator  of  the 
home network and the operator of the visited network; 

‘regulated  roaming  call’  means  a  mobile  voice  telephony  call  made  by  a  roaming 
terminating  on  a  public 
customer,  originating  on  a  visited  network  and 
communications  network  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  or  received  by  a 
roaming  customer,  originating  on  a  public  communications  network  within  the 
Community ⌦ Union ⌫ and terminating on a visited network; 

‘roaming  customer’  means  a  customer  of  a  provider  of  terrestrial  public  mobile 
communications services, by means of a terrestrial public mobile network situated in 
the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  ,  whose  contract  or  arrangement  with  his  home 
provider permits the use of a mobile telephone or other device to make or to receive 
calls,  to  send  or  receive  SMS  messages,  or  to  use  packet  switched  data 
communications  on  a  visited  network  by  means  of  arrangements  between  the 
operator of the home network and the operator of the visited network; 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(a) 

‘visited network’ means a terrestrial public mobile communications network situated 
in  a  Member  State  other  than  that  of  the  home  network  and  permitting  a  roaming 
customer to make or receive calls, to send or receive SMS messages or to use packet 
switched  data  communications,  by  means  of  arrangements  with  the  operator  of  the 
home network; 

(h) 

‘Euro-SMS tariff’ means any tariff not exceeding the maximum charge provided for 
in  Article 4b9,  which  a  home  provider  may  levy  for  the  provision  of  regulated 
roaming SMS messages in accordance with that Article; 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(b) 

EN 

24 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
(i) 

(j) 

(k) 

(l) 

(m) 

(n) 

(o) 

‘SMS message’ means a Short Message Service text message, composed principally 
of  alphabetical  and/or  numerical  characters,  capable  of  being  sent  between  mobile 
and/or fixed numbers assigned in accordance with national numbering plans; 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(b) (adapted) 

‘regulated  roaming  SMS  message’  means  an  SMS  message  sent  by  a  roaming 
customer,  originating  on  a  visited  network  and 
terminating  on  a  public 
communications  network  within  the  Community  ⌦ Union ⌫  or  received  by  a 
roaming  customer,  originating  on  a  public  communications  network  within  the 
Community ⌦ Union ⌫ and terminating on a visited network; 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.3(b) 

‘regulated data roaming service’ means a roaming service enabling the use of packet 
switched  data  communications  by  a  roaming  customer  by  means  of  his  mobile 
telephone  or  other  mobile  device  while  it  is  connected  to  a  visited  network.  A 
regulated  data  roaming  service  does  not  include  the  transmission  or  receipt  of 
regulated  roaming  calls  or  SMS  messages,  but  does  include  the  transmission  and 
receipt of MMS messages.; 

(cid:216) new 

'Euro-data tariff' means any tariff not exceeding the maximum charge provided for in 
Article  12,  which  a  home  provider  may  levy  for  the  provision  of  regulated  data 
roaming services in accordance with that Article; 

'alternative  roaming  provider'  means  a  home  provider,  different  from  the  operator 
providing  domestic  mobile  communication  services,  that  provides  a  roaming 
customer with roaming services via its own network or as a mobile virtual network 
operator or reseller;  

‘wholesale roaming access’ means the making available of facilities and/or services 
to  another  undertaking,  under  defined  conditions,  for  the  purpose  of  providing 
roaming services to retail customers; 

'European  Union  (EU)  roaming  profile'  means  a  preconfigured  profile  for  the 
provision of separate roaming services, which is provided in addition to a profile for 
the provision of domestic mobile services on the same SIM card. 

Article 3 

Wholesale roaming access 

1 Mobile network operators shall meet all reasonable requests for wholesale roaming access, 
including  those  from  mobile  virtual  network  operators  and  resellers.  Rules  on  regulated 
wholesale roaming tariffs laid down in Articles  6, 8 and 11 shall  apply  for the provision of 
wholesale roaming access. 

EN 

25 

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2.  Wholesale  roaming  access  shall  cover  access  to  all  network  elements  and  associated 
facilities, relevant services, software and information systems, necessary for the provision of 
roaming services to customers. 

3.  Wholesale  roaming  access  request  shall  be  granted  within  a  two  month  period  from  the 
receipt of the request by the network operator.  

4. In order to ensure a consistent regulatory approach to the wholesale access for the provision 
of  roaming  services,  BEREC  in  close  co-operation  with  the  Commission,  shall  lay  down 
guidelines for wholesale access conditions for the purpose of providing roaming services.  

Article 4 

Separate sale of roaming services 

1.  Home  providers  shall  enable  their  subscribers  to  access  voice,  SMS  and  data  roaming 
services of any interconnected alternative roaming provider. 

2. With effect from 1 July 2014, home providers shall inform all their roaming customers of 
the  possibility  to  unsubscribe  from  their  existing  roaming  services  and  to  opt  for  roaming 
services from an alternative roaming provider. The roaming customers shall be given a period 
of  two  months  within  which  to  make  their  choice  known  to  their  home  provider.  Roaming 
customers who have not expressed their choice within that period shall have the right to opt 
for an alternative roaming provider at any moment, in line with paragraphs 3 and 4.  

3.  The  customer's  choice  for  an  alternative  roaming  provider  shall  not  entail  any  associated 
subscription  or  other  fixed  or  recurring  charges  by  the  home  provider  and  shall  be  possible 
with any retail tariff plan.  

4. Any switch to or from an alternative roaming provider shall be free of charge and shall not 
entail conditions or restrictions pertaining to elements of the subscription other than roaming, 
and shall be carried out within five working days, save that where a roaming customer who 
has subscribed to a domestic package which includes roaming prices other than the Eurotariff, 
Euro-SMS tariff or Euro-data tariff, the home provider may delay the switch from the old to 
the new subscription concerning roaming services for a specified period not exceeding three 
months.  

5.  At  the  time  of  making  or  renewing  a  contract  on  mobile  communication  services,  home 
providers shall provide all customers individually with full information on the possibility to 
choose  an  alternative  roaming  provider  and  facilitate  the  conclusion  of  a  contract  with  an 
alternative  roaming  provider.  Customers  concluding  a  contract  with  the  home  provider  for 
roaming  services  shall  explicitly  confirm  that  they  have  been  informed  of  such  possibility. 
The providers of mobile communications services shall not prevent retailers serving as their 
points  of  sale  to  offer  contracts  for  separate  roaming  services  with  alternative  roaming 
providers.  

6.  The  home  provider  or  the  operator  of  a  visited  network  shall  not  alter  the  technical 
characteristics of roaming services provided by an alternative roaming provider in such a way 
as to make them differ from the technical characteristics, including the quality parameters, of 
roaming  services  provided  by  the  operator  providing  domestic  mobile  communications 
services.  

EN 

26 

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Article 5 

Facility for separate sale of roaming services 

In  order  to  ensure  the  development  of  the  single  market,  implementation  of  the  technical 
solutions for the facility of separate sale of roaming services shall take place simultaneously 
across the Union. 

For the purpose of separate sale of roaming services, operators shall make sure that facilities 
are in place by 1 July 2014 at the latest, to ensure that the customer can use domestic mobile 
services  and  separate  roaming  services  offered  by  an  alternative  roaming  operator  while 
keeping  their  mobile  number.  In  order  to  enable  the  separate  sale  of  roaming  services, 
operators may in particular allow the use of a "EU roaming profile" on the same SIM card and 
the use of the same terminal alongside domestic mobile services. Pricing for interconnection 
related to the provision of this facility shall be cost-orientated and there should be no direct 
charges to consumers for the use of this facility. 

BEREC, after consulting stakeholders and in close co-operation with the Commission, shall 
lay down within a reasonable period of time not exceeding three months after the adoption of 
this  Regulation  guidelines  with  regard  to  harmonised  technical  solutions  relating  to  the 
facility for separate roaming services and to harmonised procedures to change the provider of 
roaming  services.  Upon  a  reasoned  request  from  the  BEREC,  the  Commission  may  extend 
that period. 

If necessary, the Commission could give a mandate to a European Standardisation Body for 
the adaptation of the relevant standards that are necessary for the harmonised implementation 
of the facility. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

Article 36 

Wholesale charges for the making of regulated roaming calls 

1.  The  average  wholesale  charge  that  the  operator  of  a  visited  network  may  levy  from  the 
operator of a roaming customer's home network ⌦ home provider⌫ for the provision of a 
regulated roaming call originating on that visited network, inclusive inter alia of origination, 
transit and termination costs, shall not exceed EUR 0,30 (cid:214) 0,14  per minute (cid:214) as of 1 July 
2012  . 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.4(a) (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

2.  The  average  wholesale  charge  referred  to  in paragraph 1  shall  apply  between  any  pair  of 
operators  and  shall  be  calculated  over  a  twelve-month  period  or  any  such  shorter  period  as 
may  remain  before  the  end  of  the  period  of  application  of  a  maximum  average  wholesale 
charge  as  provided  for  in  this  paragraph  or  the  expiry  of  this  Regulation.  The  maximum 
average wholesale charge shall decrease to EUR 0,28 and EUR 0,26, on 30 August 2008 and 
on 1 July 2009 respectively and shall further decrease to EUR 0,22 (cid:214) 0,10  and EUR 0,18 
(cid:214) 0,06  , on 1 July 2010 (cid:214) 2013  and on 1 July 2011 (cid:214) 2014  respectively. (cid:214) Without 

EN 

27 

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prejudice to Article 13, the maximum average wholesale charge shall remain at EUR 0,06 for 
the duration of this Regulation.  

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 

3. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall be calculated by dividing the 
total wholesale roaming revenue received by the total number of wholesale roaming minutes 
sold for the provision of wholesale roaming calls within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫by the 
relevant  operator  over  the  relevant  period.  The  operator  of  the  visited  network  shall  be 
permitted to make a distinction between peak and off-peak charges 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.4(b) (adapted) 

However,  with  effect  from  1 July  2009,  tThe  average  wholesale  charge  referred  to  in 
paragraph 1 shall be calculated by dividing the total wholesale roaming revenue received by 
the total number of wholesale roaming minutes actually used for the provision of wholesale 
roaming calls within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ by the relevant operator over the relevant 
period,  aggregated  on  a  per  second  basis  adjusted  to  take  account  of  the  possibility  for  the 
operator  of  the  visited  network  to  apply  an  initial  minimum  charging  period  not  exceeding 
30 seconds. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 47 

Retail charges for regulated roaming calls 

1.  Home  providers  shall  make  available  and  actively  offer  to  all  their  roaming  customers, 
clearly and transparently, a Eurotariff as provided for in paragraph 2. This Eurotariff shall not 
entail any associated  subscription or other fixed  or  recurring  charges  and  may  be  combined 
with any retail tariff. 

When  making  this  offer,  home  providers  shall  remind  any  of  their  roaming  customers  who, 
before  30 June  2007,  had  chosen  a  specific  roaming  tariff  or  package  of  the  conditions 
applicable to that tariff or package. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.5(a) 
(cid:214) new 

2. The retail charge (excluding VAT) of a Eurotariff which a home provider may levy from its 
roaming customer for the provision of a regulated roaming call may vary for any roaming call 
but  shall  not  exceed  EUR 0,49  (cid:214) 0,32   per  minute  for  any  call  made  or  EUR 0,24 
(cid:214) 0,11  per minute for any call received (cid:214) as of 1 July 2012  . The price ceiling for calls 
made shall decrease to EUR 0,46 (cid:214) 0,28  and EUR 0,43 (cid:214) 0,24 on 1 July 2013 and on 1 
July  2014  respectively,   and  for  calls  received  to  EUR 0,22  and  EUR 0,19,  on  30 August 
2008 and on 1 July 2009 respectively. The price ceiling for calls made shall further decrease 
to EUR 0,39 and EUR 0,35 and for calls received to EUR 0,15 and EUR 0,11 (cid:214) 0,10  on 
1 July 2010 and on 1 July 2011 respectively (cid:214) 2013  . (cid:214) Without prejudice to Articles 13 

EN 

28 

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and 19 these regulated maximum retail charges for the Eurotariff shall remain valid until 30 
June 2016.  

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.5(a) (adapted) 

With effect from 1 July 2010, hHome providers shall not levy any charge from their roaming 
customers  for  the  receipt  by  them  of  a  roaming  voicemail  message.  This  shall  be  without 
prejudice to other applicable charges such as those for listening to such messages. 

With  effect  from  1 July  2009  eEvery  home  provider  shall  charge  its  roaming  customers  for 
the  provision  of  any  regulated  roaming  call  to  which  a  Eurotariff  applies,  whether  made  or 
received, on a per second basis. 

By  way  of  derogation  from  the  third  subparagraph,  the  home  provider  may  apply  an  initial 
minimum  charging  period  not  exceeding  30 seconds  to  calls  made  which  are  subject  to  a 
Eurotariff. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.5(a) 

3. All roaming customers shall be offered a tariff as set out in paragraph 2. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 

3.  All  existing  roaming  customers  shall  be  given  the  opportunity  by  30 July  2007  to  opt 
deliberately for a Eurotariff or any other roaming tariff, and shall be allowed a period of two 
months within which to make their choice known to their home provider. The requested tariff 
shall be activated no later than one month after receipt by the home provider of the customer's 
request. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 
(cid:214) new 

(cid:214) Home providers shall apply a Eurotariff to all existing  Rroaming customers who within 
that  period  of  two  months  have  not  expressed  their  choice  shall  automatically  be  provided 
with a Eurotariff as set out in paragraph 2. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

However, ⌦ with the exception of such ⌫ roaming customers who before 30 June 2007 had 
(cid:214) have  already made a deliberate choice of a specific roaming tariff or package other than 
the  roaming  tariff  ⌦ by  virtue  of ⌫  which  ⌦ they  benefit  from  a  different  tariff  for 
regulated  roaming  calls  than ⌫  they  would  have  been  accorded  in  the  absence  of  such 
choice,  and  who  fail  to  express  a  choice  pursuant  to  this  paragraph,  shall  remain  on  their 
previously chosen tariff or package. 

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29 

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4. Home providers shall apply a Eurotariff to all new roaming customers who do not make a 
deliberate choice to select a different roaming tariff or a tariff package for roaming services 
which includes a different tariff for regulated roaming calls. 

(cid:216) new 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.5(b) 

54. Any roaming customer may request, at any point after the process set out in paragraph 3 
has been completed, to switch to or from a Eurotariff. Any switch must be made within one 
working  day  of  receipt  of  the  request  and  free  of  charge  and  shall  not  entail  conditions  or 
restrictions  pertaining  to  other  elements  of  the  subscription,  save  that  where  a  roaming 
customer  who  has  subscribed  to  a  special  roaming  package  which  includes  more  than  one 
roaming service (namely, voice, SMS and/or data) wishes to switch to a Eurotariff, the home 
provider may require the switching customer to forego the benefits of the other elements of 
that package. A home provider may delay a switch until the previous roaming tariff has been 
effective for a minimum specified period not exceeding three months. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

Article 4a8 

Wholesale charges for regulated roaming SMS messages 

1. With effect from 1 July 2009 (cid:214) 2012  , the average wholesale charge that the operator of 
a  visited  network  may  levy  from  the  operator  of  a  roaming  customer's  home  network 
⌦ home provider ⌫, for the provision of a regulated roaming SMS message originating on 
that  visited  network,  shall  not  exceed  EUR 0,04  (cid:214) 0,03   per  SMS  message.  (cid:214) The 
maximum average wholesale charge for the provision of a regulated roaming SMS message 
shall  decrease  to  EUR  0,02  on  1  July  2014.  Without  prejudice  to  Article  13  the  regulated 
wholesale charge for the provision of regulated roaming SMS messages shall remain at EUR 
0,02 for the duration of this Regulation.  

2.  The  average  wholesale  charge  referred  to  in paragraph 1  shall  apply  between  any  pair  of 
operators  and  shall  be  calculated  over  a  twelve-month  period  or  any  such  shorter  period  as 
may remain before the expiry of this Regulation. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 (adapted) 

3. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall be calculated by dividing the 
total wholesale revenue received by the operator of the visited network from each operator of 
a  home  network  for  the  origination  and  transmission  of  regulated  roaming  SMS  messages 
within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ in the relevant period by the total number of such SMS 
messages  originated  and  transmitted  on  behalf  of  the  relevant  operator  of  a  home  network 
within that period. 

EN 

30 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 
(cid:214) new 

4. The operator of a visited network shall not levy from the operator of a roaming customer’s 
home  network  any  charge,  separate  from  the  charge  referred  to  in  paragraph 1,  for  the 
termination of a regulated roaming SMS message sent to a roaming customer while roaming 
on its visited network. 

Article 4b9 

Retail charges for regulated roaming SMS messages 

1.  Home  providers  shall  make  available  to  all  their  roaming  customers,  clearly  and 
transparently, a Euro-SMS tariff as provided for in paragraph 2. The Euro-SMS tariff shall not 
entail  any  associated  subscription  or  other  fixed  or  recurring  charges  and  may  be  combined 
with any retail tariff, subject to the other provisions of this Article. 

2.  With  effect  from  1 July  2009  (cid:214) 2012   ,  the  retail  charge  (excluding  VAT)  of  a  Euro-
SMS  tariff  which  a  home  provider  may  levy  from  its  roaming  customer  for  a  regulated 
roaming  SMS  message  sent  by  that  roaming  customer  may  vary  for  any  roaming  SMS 
message but shall not exceed EUR 0,11 (cid:214) 0,10  . (cid:214) Without prejudice to Articles 13 and 
19,  the  regulated  maximum  retail  charge  for  the  Euro-SMS  tariff  shall  remain  at  EUR  0,10 
until 30 June 2016.  

3. Home providers shall not levy any charge from their roaming customers for the receipt by 
them of a regulated roaming SMS message. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 (adapted) 

4. From 1 July 2009 hHome providers shall apply a Euro-SMS tariff to all existing roaming 
customers  automatically,  with  the  exception  of  such  roaming  customers  who  have  already 
made  a  deliberate  choice  of  a  specific  roaming  tariff  or  package  by  virtue  of  which  they 
benefit  from  a  different  tariff  for  regulated  roaming  SMS  messages  than  they  would  have 
been accorded in the absence of such a choice. 

5.  From  1 July  2009  hHome  providers  shall  apply  a  Euro-SMS  tariff  to  all  new  roaming 
customers who do not make a deliberate choice to select a different roaming SMS tariff or a 
tariff  package  for  roaming  services  which  includes  a  different  tariff  for  regulated  roaming 
SMS messages. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.6 

6.  Any  roaming  customer  may  request  to  switch  to  or  from  a  Euro-SMS  tariff  at  any  time. 
Any switch must be made within one working day of receipt of the request and free of charge 
and shall not entail conditions or restrictions pertaining to elements of the subscription other 
than roaming. A home provider may delay such a switch until the previous roaming tariff has 
been  effective  for  a  minimum  specified  period  not  exceeding  three  months.  A  Euro-SMS 
tariff may always be combined with a Eurotariff. 

EN 

31 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
7.  No  later  than  30 June  2009,  home  providers  shall  inform  all  their  roaming  customers 
individually about the Euro-SMS tariff, that it will apply from 1 July 2009 at the latest to all 
roaming  customers  who  have  not  made  a  deliberate  choice  of  a  special  tariff  or  package 
applicable  to  regulated  SMS  messages,  and  about  their  right  to  switch  to  and  from  it  in 
accordance with paragraph 6. 

Article 4c10 

Technical characteristics of regulated roaming SMS messages 

No home provider or operator of a visited network shall alter the technical characteristics of 
regulated  roaming  SMS  messages  in  such  a  way  as  to  make  them  differ  from  the  technical 
characteristics of SMS messages provided within its domestic market. 

(cid:216) new 

Article 11 

Wholesale charges for regulated data roaming services 

1.  With  effect  from  1  July  2012  the  average  wholesale  charge  that  the  operator  of  a  visited 
network may levy from the roaming customer's home provider for the provision of regulated 
data roaming services by means of that visited network shall not exceed a safeguard limit of 
EUR 0,30, EUR 0,20 as of 1 July 2013 and EUR 0,10 as of 1 July 2014 per megabyte of data 
transmitted. Without prejudice to Article 13 the maximum average wholesale charge for the 
provision of regulated data roaming services shall remain at EUR 0,10 per megabyte of data 
transmitted for the duration of this Regulation. 

2. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall apply between any pair of 
operators  and  shall  be  calculated  over  a  twelve-month  period  or  any  such  shorter  period  as 
may remain before the expiry of this Regulation. 

3. The average wholesale charge referred to in paragraph 1 shall be calculated by dividing the 
total wholesale revenue received by the operator of the visited network from each provider of 
roaming services for the provision of regulated data roaming services in the relevant period by 
the total number of megabytes of data actually consumed by the provision of those services 
within that period, aggregated on a per kilobyte basis. 

Article12 

Retail charges for regulated data roaming services 

1.  Roaming  providers  shall  make  available  to  all  their  roaming  customers,  clearly  and 
transparently, a Euro-data tariff as provided for in paragraph 2. This Euro-data tariff shall not 
entail any associated subscription or other fixed  or  recurring  charges  and  may  be  combined 
with any retail tariff. 

When  making  this  offer,  home  providers  shall  remind  any  of  their  roaming  customers  who, 
before  30  June  2012,  had  chosen  a  specific  roaming  tariff  or  package  of  the  conditions 
applicable to that tariff or package. 

EN 

32 

   EN 

 
 
2. With effect from 1 July 2012, the retail charge (excluding VAT) of a Euro-data tariff which 
a home provider may levy from its roaming customer for the provision of a regulated roaming 
data shall not exceed EUR 0,90 per megabyte. The price ceiling for data used shall decrease 
to  EUR  0,70  and  EUR  0,50,  per  megabyte  used  on  1  July  2013  and  on  1  July  2014 
respectively.  Without  prejudice  to  Articles  13  and  19,  the  regulated  maximum  retail  charge 
shall remain at EUR 0,50, per megabyte used until 30 June 2016. 

Every roaming provider shall charge its roaming customers for the provision of any regulated 
roaming data service to which a Euro-data tariff applies on a per kilobyte basis. 

3.  From  1  July  2012  home  providers  shall  apply  a  Euro-data  tariff  to  all  existing  roaming 
customers  automatically,  with  the  exception  of  such  roaming  customers  who  have  already 
made a choice of a specific roaming tariff or package by virtue of which they benefit from a 
different tariff for regulated data roaming services than they would have been accorded in the 
absence of such choice. 

4.  From  1  July  2012  home  providers  shall  apply  a  Euro-data  tariff  to  all  new  roaming 
customers who do not make a deliberate choice to select a different roaming data tariff or a 
tariff package for roaming services which includes a different tariff for regulated roaming data 
services. 

5. Any roaming customer may request to switch to or from a Euro-data tariff respecting their 
contractual conditions at any point in time. Any switch must be made within one working day 
of  receipt  of  the  request  and  free  of  charge  and  shall  not  entail  conditions  or  restrictions 
pertaining  to  elements  of  the  subscription  other  than  roaming.  A  home  provider  may  delay 
such  a  switch  until  the  previous  roaming  tariff  has  been  effective  for  a  minimum  specified 
period not exceeding three months. A Euro-data tariff may always be combined with a Euro-
SMS tariff and a Eurotariff. 

6.  No  later  than  30  June  2012,  home  providers  shall  inform  all  their  roaming  customers 
individually about the Euro-data tariff, that it will apply from 1 July 2012 at the latest to all 
roaming  customers  who  have  not  made  a  deliberate  choice  of  a  special  tariff  or  package 
applicable  to  regulated  data  services,  and  about  their  right  to  switch  to  and  from  it  in 
accordance with paragraph 5. 

Article 13 

Conditions for advance non-application of maximum wholesale and retail charges 

1.  In  order  to  assess  the  competitive  development  in  the  roaming  markets  BEREC  shall 
collect regularly data on the development of retail and wholesale charges for voice, SMS and 
data roaming services. These data shall be notified to the Commission, at least twice a year. 
The Commission shall make them public. 

2. If, after 30 June 2018, the average wholesale charge for one of the roaming services (voice, 
SMS or data) for unbalanced traffic between operators that do not belong to the same group 
falls to 75% or less of the maximum wholesale charges provided for in Articles 6(2), 8(1) and 
11(1),  the  maximum  wholesale  charges  for  the  roaming  service  concerned  shall  no  longer 
apply.  The  Commission  shall  regularly  verify,  on  the  basis  of  the  market  data  collected  by 
BEREC, whether this condition is met and, if so, it shall publish without delay in the C series 
of the Official Journal of the European Union the data proving that the maximum wholesale 
charges no longer apply for the service concerned. 

EN 

33 

   EN 

 
3.  If,  following  the  implementation  of  the  separate  sale  of  roaming  services  referred  to  in 
Article 5 and before 1 July 2016, the average retail charge at the Union level falls to 75% or 
less  of  the  maximum  retail  charges  provided  for  in  Articles  7(2),  9(2)  and  12(2),  the 
maximum  retail  charges  for  that  roaming  services  shall  no  longer  apply.  The  Commission 
shall  regularly  verify,  on  the  basis  of  the  market  data  collected  by  BEREC,  whether  this 
condition is met and, if so, it shall publish without delay in the C series of the Official Journal 
of the European Union the data proving that the maximum retail charges no longer apply for 
the service concerned. 

4.  The  relevant  maximum  charges  shall  cease  to  apply  as  from  the  first  day  of  the  month 
following  the  publication  of  the  data  proving  that  the  conditions  of  paragraphs  2  or  3 
respectively are satisfied. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.8  
(cid:214) new 

Article 614 

Transparency of retail charges for regulated roaming calls and SMS messages 

1.  To  alert  a  roaming  customer  to  the  fact  that  he  will  be  subject  to  roaming  charges  when 
making  or  receiving  a  call  or  when  sending  an  SMS  message,  each  home  provider  shall, 
except when the customer has notified his home provider that he does not require this service, 
provide the customer, automatically by means of a Message Service, without undue delay and 
free of charge, when he enters a Member State other than that of his home network, with basic 
personalised  pricing  information  on  the  roaming  charges  (including  VAT)  that  apply  to  the 
making and receiving  of calls and to the sending  of  SMS  messages  by  that  customer  in  the 
visited Member State. 

This basic personalised pricing information shall include the maximum charges the customer 
may be subject to under his tariff scheme for: 

(a) 

making  calls  within  the  visited  country  and  back  to  the  Member  State  of  his  home 
network, as well as for calls received; and 

(b) 

sending regulated roaming SMS messages while in the visited Member State. 

It shall also include the free of charge number referred to in paragraph 2 for obtaining more 
detailed  information  and  information  on  the  possibility  of  accessing  emergency  services  by 
dialling the European emergency number 112 free of charge. 

(cid:214) On the occasion of each message, a customer shall have the opportunity to give notice to 
home provider, free of charge and in an easy manner, that he does not require the automatic 
Message Service.  A customer who has given notice that he does not require the automatic 
Message  Service  shall  have  the  right  at  any  time  and  free  of  charge  to  require  the  home 
provider to provide the service again. 

Home providers shall provide blind or partially-sighted customers with this basic personalised 
pricing information automatically, by voice call, free of charge, if they so request. 

EN 

34 

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(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.8 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

2.  In  addition  to  paragraph 1,  customers  shall  have  the  right  to  request  and  receive,  free  of 
charge, and irrespective of their location within the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ , more detailed 
personalised pricing information on the roaming charges that apply in the visited network to 
voice  calls,  SMS,  MMS  and  other  data  communication  services,  and  information  on  the 
transparency  measures  applicable  by  virtue  of  this  Regulation,  by  means  of  a  mobile  voice 
call or by SMS. Such a request shall be to a free-of-charge number designated for this purpose 
by the home provider. (cid:214) Obligations provided for in paragraph 1 shall not apply to machine 
to machine (M2M) type of devices that use mobile communication.  

3.  Home  providers  shall  provide  all  users  with  full  information  on  applicable  roaming 
charges, in particular on the Eurotariff, and the Euro-SMS tariff (cid:214) and the Euro-data tariff  
,  when  subscriptions  are  taken  out.  They  shall  also  provide  their  roaming  customers  with 
updates  on  applicable  roaming  charges  without  undue  delay  each  time  there  is  a  change  in 
these charges. 

Home  providers  shall  take  the  necessary  steps  to  secure  awareness  by  all  their  roaming 
customers of the availability of the Eurotariff, and the Euro-SMS tariff (cid:214) and the Euro-data 
tariff  . They shall in particular communicate to all roaming customers by 30 July 2007 the 
conditions relating to the Eurotariff, and by 30 June 2009 the conditions relating to the Euro-
SMS tariff (cid:214) and by 30 June 2012 the conditions relating to the Euro-data tariff as defined in 
Article  12   ,  in  each  case  in  a  clear  and  unbiased  manner.  They  shall  send  a  reminder  at 
reasonable intervals thereafter to all customers who have opted for another tariff. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 (adapted) 

Article 6a15 

Transparency and safeguard mechanisms for regulated ⌦ retail ⌫ data roaming 
services 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 
(cid:214) new 

1.  Home  providers  shall  ensure  that  their  roaming  customers,  both  before  and  after  the 
conclusion of a contract, are kept adequately informed of the charges which apply to their use 
of regulated data roaming services, in ways which facilitate customers' understanding of the 
financial consequences of such use and permit them to monitor and control their expenditure 
on regulated data roaming services in accordance with paragraphs 2 and 3. (cid:214) The safeguard 
mechanisms referred to in paragraph 3 shall not apply to pre-paid customers.  

Where appropriate, home providers shall  inform their customers, before the conclusion of a 
contract  and  on  a  regular  basis  thereafter,  of  the  risk  of  automatic  and  uncontrolled  data 
roaming  connection  and  download.  Furthermore,  home  providers  shall  explain  to  their 
customers,  in  a  clear  and  easily  understandable  manner,  how  to  switch  off  these  automatic 
data  roaming  connections  in  order  to  avoid  uncontrolled  consumption  of  data  roaming 
services. 

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35 

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(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 (adapted) 

2. From 1 July 2009 at the latest, aAn automatic message from the home provider shall inform 
the roaming customer that he is roaming and provide basic personalised tariff information on 
the  charges  applicable  to  the  provision  of  regulated  data  roaming  services  to  that  roaming 
customer  in  the  Member  State  concerned,  except  where  the  customer  has  notified  his  home 
provider that he does not require this information. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 

Such  basic  personalised  tariff  information  shall  be  delivered  to  the  roaming  customer’s 
mobile  telephone  or  other  device,  for  example  by  an  SMS  message,  an  e-mail  or  a  pop-up 
window on the computer, every time the roaming customer enters a Member State other than 
that of his home network  and  initiates for the  first  time a  regulated  data  roaming service in 
that particular Member State. It shall be provided free of charge at the moment the roaming 
customer  initiates  a  regulated  data  roaming  service,  by  an  appropriate  means  adapted  to 
facilitate its receipt and easy comprehension. 

A customer who has notified his home provider that he does not require the automatic tariff 
information shall have the right at any time and free of charge to require the home provider to 
provide this service again. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 (adapted) 

3.  By  1 March  2010,  eEach  home  provider  shall  grant  to  all  their  roaming  customers  the 
opportunity to opt deliberately and free of charge for a facility which provides information on 
the accumulated consumption expressed in volume or in the currency in which the roaming 
customer is billed for regulated data roaming services and which guarantees that, without the 
customer’s explicit consent, the accumulated expenditure for regulated data roaming services 
over a specified period of use does not exceed a specified financial limit. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 

To this end, the home provider shall make available one or more maximum financial limits 
for  specified  periods  of  use,  provided  that  the  customer  is  informed  in  advance  of  the 
corresponding volume amounts. One of these limits (the default financial limit) shall be close 
to,  but  not  exceed,  EUR 50  of  outstanding  charges  per  monthly  billing  period  (excluding 
VAT). 

Alternatively, the home provider may establish limits expressed in volume, provided that the 
customer is informed in advance of the corresponding financial amounts. One of these limits 
(the default volume limit) shall have a corresponding financial amount not exceeding EUR 50 
of outstanding charges per monthly billing period (excluding VAT). 

In addition, the home provider may offer to its roaming customers other limits with different, 
that is, higher or lower, maximum monthly financial limits. 

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36 

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By 1 July 2010, tThe default limit in the second and third subparagraphs shall be applicable to 
all customers who have not opted for another limit. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 (adapted) 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 

Each home provider shall also ensure that an appropriate notification is sent to the roaming 
customer’s mobile telephone or other device, for example by an SMS message, an e-mail or a 
pop-up window on the computer, when the data roaming services have reached 80 % of the 
agreed financial or volume limit. Customers shall have the right to require their operators to 
stop  sending  such  notifications  and  shall  have  the  right  at  any  time  and  free  of  charge  to 
require the home provider to provide the service again. 

When this financial or volume limit would otherwise be exceeded, a notification shall be sent 
to the roaming customer’s mobile telephone  or other device. This notification shall indicate 
the procedure to  be followed if  the customer wishes  to continue provision of those  services 
and  the  cost  associated  with  each  additional  unit  to  be  consumed.  If  the  roaming  customer 
does  not  respond  as  prompted  in  the  notification  received,  the  home  provider  shall 
immediately cease to provide and to charge the roaming customer for regulated data roaming 
services, unless and until the roaming customer requests the continued or renewed provision 
of those services. 

From 1 November 2010, wWhenever a roaming customer requests to opt for or to remove a 
‘financial  or  volume  limit’  facility,  the  change  must  be  made  within  one  working  day  of 
receipt of the request, free of charge, and shall not entail conditions or restrictions pertaining 
to other elements of the subscription. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 (adapted) 

4. With effect from 1 July 2009: 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.9 

(a)  the  average  wholesale  charge  that  the  operator  of  a  visited  network  may  levy 
from  the  operator  of  a  roaming  customer’s  home  network  for  the  provision  of 
regulated data roaming services by means of that visited network shall not exceed a 
safeguard limit of EUR 1,00 on 1 July 2009, EUR 0,80 on 1 July 2010 and EUR 0,50 
on  1 July  2011  per  megabyte  of  data  transmitted.  The  application  of  this  safeguard 
limit  shall  not  lead  to  any  distortion  or  restriction  of  competition  in  the  wholesale 
data roaming market in accordance with Article 8(2)(b) of the Framework Directive; 

(b) this average wholesale charge shall apply between any pair of operators and shall 
be calculated over a twelve-month period or any such shorter period as may remain 
before the expiry of this Regulation; 

(c)  the  average  wholesale  charge  referred  to  in  point (a)  shall  be  calculated  by 
dividing the total wholesale revenue received by the operator of the visited network 
from  each  operator  of  a  home  network  for  the  provision  of  regulated  data  roaming 

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services  in  the  relevant  period  by  the  total  number  of  megabytes  of  data  actually 
consumed by the provision of those services within that period, aggregated on a per 
kilobyte basis. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 716 

Supervision and enforcement 

1. National regulatory authorities shall monitor and supervise compliance with this Regulation 
within their territory. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.10(a) 
(cid:214) new 

2. National regulatory authorities shall make up-to-date information on the application of this 
Regulation,  in  particular  Articles 36  to  ,  47,  4a8,  4b9,  (cid:214) 11   and 6a  (cid:214) 12   ,  publicly 
available in a manner that enables interested parties to have easy access to it. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

3.  National  regulatory  authorities  shall  in  preparation  for  the  review  provided  for  in 
Article 11, monitor developments in wholesale and retail charges for the provision to roaming 
customers of voice and data communications services, including SMS and MMS, including in 
the  outermost  regions  referred  to in  Article 299(2)  349  of  the  Treaty.  National  regulatory 
authorities  shall  also  be  alert  to  the  particular  case  of  involuntary  roaming  in  the  border 
regions  of  neighbouring  Member  States  and  monitor  whether  traffic  steering  techniques  are 
used to the disadvantage of customers. They shall communicate the results of such monitoring 
to  the  Commission,  including  separate  information  on  corporate,  post-paid  and  pre-paid 
customers, every six months. 

4.  National  regulatory  authorities  shall  have  the  power  to  require  undertakings  subject  to 
obligations under this Regulation to supply all information relevant to the implementation and 
enforcement of this Regulation. Those undertakings shall provide such information promptly 
on  request  and  to  the  timescales  and  level  of  detail  required  by  the  national  regulatory 
authority. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.10(b) 

5.  National  regulatory  authorities  may  intervene  on  their  own  initiative  in  order  to  ensure 
compliance with this Regulation. In particular, they shall, where necessary, make use of the 
powers under Article 5 of the Access Directive to ensure adequate access and interconnection 
in order to guarantee the end-to-end connectivity and interoperability of roaming services, for 
example  where  subscribers  are  unable  to  exchange  regulated  roaming  SMS  messages  with 
subscribers of a terrestrial mobile network in another Member State as a result of the absence 
of an agreement enabling the delivery of those messages. 

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6. Where a national regulatory authority finds that a breach of the obligations set out in this 
Regulation has occurred, it shall have the power to require the immediate cessation of such a 
breach. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 817 

Dispute resolution 

1.  In  the  event  of  a  dispute  in  connection  with  the  obligations  laid  down  in  this  Regulation 
between undertakings providing electronic communications networks or services in a Member 
State,  the  dispute  resolution  procedures  laid  down  in  Articles 20  and 21  of  the  Framework 
Directive shall apply. 

2. In the event of an unresolved dispute involving a consumer or end-user and concerning an 
issue falling within the scope of this Regulation, the Member States shall ensure that the out-
of-court  dispute  resolution  procedures  laid  down  in  Article 34  of  the  Universal  Service 
Directive are available. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.11 
(cid:214) new 

Article 918 

Penalties 

Member  States  shall  lay  down  the  rules  on  penalties  applicable  to  infringements  of  this 
Regulation  and  shall  take  all  measures  necessary  to  ensure  that  they  are  implemented.  The 
penalties  provided  for  must  be  effective,  proportionate  and  dissuasive.  Member  States  shall 
notify those provisions to the Commission no later than 30 March 2008 or, in the case of the 
in  Article 3(2)  and (3),  Article 4(2)  and (4)  and 
additional  requirements 
Articles 4a,  4b,  4c,  6,  6a  and 7  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  544/200915,  no  later  than  30 March 
2010  (cid:214) 2012   and  shall  notify  it  without  delay  of  any  subsequent  amendment  affecting 
them. 

introduced 

(cid:208) 717/2007 (adapted) 

Article 10 

Amendment to Directive 2002/21/EC (Framework Directive) 

The  following  paragraph  shall  be  added  to  Article 1  of  Directive  2002/21/EC  (Framework 
Directive): 

15 

OJ L 167, 29 June 2009, p. 12. 

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‘5.  This  Directive  and  the  Specific  Directives  shall  be  without  prejudice  to  any  specific 
measure  adopted  for  the  regulation  of  international  roaming  on  public  mobile  telephone 
networks within the Community.’ 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.12 
(cid:214) new 

Article 1119 

Review 

1.  The  Commission  shall  review  the  functioning  of  this  Regulation  and,  after  a  public 
consultation,  shall  report  to  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  no  later  than  30 June 
2011 (cid:214) 2015  . The Commission shall evaluate in particular whether the objectives of this 
Regulation have been achieved. In so doing, the Commission shall review, inter alia: 

– 

– 

– 

– 

the  developments  in  wholesale  and  retail  charges  for  the  provision  to  roaming 
customers  of  voice,  SMS  and  data  communication  services,  and  the  corresponding 
development  in  mobile  communications  services  at  domestic  level  in  the  Member 
States, both for pre-paid and post-paid customers separately, and in the quality and 
speed of these services,; 

the  availability  and  quality  of  services  including  those  which  are  an  alternative  to 
roaming  (voice,  SMS  and data),  in  particular  in  the  light  of  technological 
developments,; 

the extent to which consumers have benefited through real reductions in the price of 
roaming  services  or  in  other  ways  from  reductions  in  the  costs  of  the  provision  of 
roaming  services  and  the  variety  of  tariffs  and  products  which  are  available  to 
consumers with different calling patterns,; 

the degree of competition in both the retail and wholesale markets, in particular the 
competitive  situation  of  smaller,  independent  or  newly  started  operators,  including 
the competition effects of commercial agreements and the degree of interconnection 
between operators.; 

the extent to which the structural solutions foreseen in Articles 3 and 4 have produced 

- 
results in developing competition in the roaming market. 

(cid:216) new 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.12 

The Commission shall also assess methods other than price regulation which could be used to 
create  a  competitive  internal  market  for  roaming  and  in  so  doing  shall  have  regard  to  an 
analysis  carried  out  independently  by  a  body  of  European  regulators  for  electronic 
communications.  On  the  basis  of  this  assessment  the  Commission  shall  make  appropriate 
recommendations. 

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(cid:216) new 

2. If the report shows that the structural measures provided for by the present Regulation are 
not  sufficient  to  promote  competition  in  the  roaming  market  for  the  benefit  of  European 
consumers, the Commission shall make appropriate proposals to the European Parliament and 
the Council to address this situation. The Commission shall examine, in particular, whether it 
is  necessary  to  modify  the  structural  measures  or  to  extend  the  duration  of  any  of  the 
maximum retail charges foreseen in Articles 7, 9 and 12. 

(cid:208) 544/2009 Art. 1.12 (adapted) 
(cid:214) new 

3. In addition, the Commission shall, no later than 30 June 2010 prepare an interim report to 
the European Parliament and the Council ⌦ on the functioning of the Regulation  every two 
years after the report foreseen in paragraph 1. The report ⌫ , which shall include a summary 
of the monitoring of the provision of roaming services in the Community ⌦ Union ⌫ and 
an assessment of the progress towards achieving the objectives of this Regulation, including 
by reference to the matters referred to in paragraph 1.  

(cid:208) 717/2007 

Article 1220 

Notification requirements 

Member  States  shall  notify  to  the  Commission  the  identity  of  the  national  regulatory 
authorities responsible for carrying out tasks under this Regulation. 

(cid:208)  

Article 21 

Repeal 

Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 is repealed. 

References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and 
shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex II. 

(cid:208) 717/2007 
(cid:206)1 544/2009 Art. 1.14 
(cid:214) new 

Article 1322 

Entry into force and expiry 

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This  Regulation  shall  enter  into  force  on  the  day  following  that  of  its  publication  in  the 
Official Journal of the European Union. 

It shall expire on 30 June (cid:206)1 2012  (cid:214) 2022  . 

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 

Done at […] 

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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EN 

43 

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(cid:207) 

ANNEX I 

Repealed Regulation with its amendment 
(referred to in Article 22) 

Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 of the European Parliament 
and of the Council 

(OJ L 171, 29.6.2007, p. 32) 

Regulation (EC) No 544/2009 of the European Parliament 
and of the Council 

(OJ L 167, 29.6.2009, p. 12) 

_____________ 

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ANNEX II 

CORRELATION TABLE  

Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 

This Regulation 

Article 1 

Article 2(1) 

Article 1 

Article 2(1) 

Article 2(2), introductory words 

Article 2(2), introductory words 

Article 2(2), points (a) to (k) 

Article 2(2), points (a) to (k) 

- 

- 

Article 3(1) 

Article 3(2) 

Article 2(2), points (l) to (o) 

Articles 3, 4 and 5 

Article 6(1) 

Article 6(2) 

Article 3(3), first subparagraph 

- 

Article 3(3), second subparagraph 

Article 6(3) 

Article 4(1) 

Article 4(2) 

Article 7(1) 

Article 7(2) 

Article 4(3), first paragraph 

- 

Article 4(3), second paragraph 

Article 4(4) 

Article 4a 

Article 4b 

Article 4b(7) 

Article 4c 

- 

- 

- 

Article 6 

Article 7(3) 

Article 7(4) 

Article 8 

Article 9 

- 

Article 10 

Article 11 

Article 12 

Article 13 

Article 14 

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Article 6a 

Article 6a(4) 

Article 7 

Article 8 

Article 9 

Article 10 

Article 15 

- 

Article 16 

Article 17 

Article 18 

- 

Article 11(1) introductory words 

Article 19(1) introductory words 

Article 11(1) first subparagraph first to fourth 
indent 

Article 19(1) first subparagraph first to fourth 
indent 

- 

Article 19(1) fifth indent 

Article 11(1) second subparagraph 

- 

Article 11(2) 

Article 12 

- 

Article 13 

Article 19(2) 

Article 20 

Article 21 

Article 22 

_____________ 

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