Published: January 2010

Summary

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International mobile roaming is one of the most important services in the European mobile operator's portfolio. According to figures released by the GSM Association some 42 per cent of Europeans travel outside their home country. And revenues from international roaming has accounted for up to 20 per cent of total mobile operator turnover in Europe. With the introduction of Pan European regulation the cost of roaming has become more visible and transparent. But outside Europe, to date there has been little regulatory intervention on roaming charges.

Mobile roaming is transforming itself in Europe as a result of regulatory intervention by the European Commission (EC). The introduction of a euro-tariff on retail and wholesale pricing for voice calls has resulted in a reduction of roaming tariffs within the European area but an increase in international roaming rates to destinations outside of Europe.

Synopis

This 170-page report supported with 48 Tables and 33 Charts looks at the evolvement of roaming prior to the introdcution of the EC cap and after. It is supported with in-depth country reviews - 7 European - 3 non-European countries). The report reveals the increasingly availability of 'opt in' bundles offered by operators to by-pass the EC cap regulation.  There is also the bypass effect of Wi-Fi and VoIP services which are becoming an easier to use alternative to international roaming.  

Some mobile operators are now moving away from bi-lateral roaming relationships. In the past operators helped found a series of roaming alliances - such as FreeMove or Bridge - which offered preferential rates for frequent travellers or business users - but now the importance of the roaming alliance has been overtaken by the rise of the Roaming Hub. The Roaming Hub enables mobile operators to interconnect to a wider range of counterparties and is becoming the preferred method to connect at a wholesale level.

This report benchmarks voice, SMS and data roaming prices across the countries surveyed in depth.

Table of Contents

Methodology
Acknowledgements
Executive Summary 
At a glance summary: the key trends in international mobile roaming from 2010 in this report
Key Statistics used in this Report
Introduction - What is international mobile roaming and how does it work?

Chapter One: Business models that are deployed for international mobile roaming

• Introduction
• Types of business model
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Two: The impact of the European Commission's roaming price cap

• Introduction
• The development of European Community (EC) regulation
• The impact of the EC regulation on roaming
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Three: A review of key roaming trends in Europe from 2007 to 2010

• Introduction
• Trends in International Roaming rates over time
• International Roaming in 2007
• International Roaming in 2009 (Pre July 2009)
• International mobile roaming rates end 2009 (changes between 07/09 and 01/10)
• The main trends over the three year period 
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Four: Innovation in mobile roaming voice/data products worldwide with case studies

• Introduction
• New EU country services (from July 2009)
• New types of roaming regulation
• New roaming product case studies
• Country Roaming surveys
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Five: The impact of technological change on international mobile roaming

• The rise of bypass services to roaming
• The threat from VoIP
• The threat from Wi-Fi
• Added Value Services for Roaming
• The Open Connectivity (OC) initiative
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Six: Global mobile roaming initiatives

• Introduction
• Roaming alliances worldwide
• Roaming alliances in Asia
• Bridge Roaming Alliance
• Roaming in the Middle East region
• Roaming in the Asia Pacific region
• Roaming in the Americas region
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Seven: The future of international mobile roaming beyond 2010

• Introduction
• Roaming usage & customer knowledge
• Drivers for new regulation ‘bill shock'
• The Costs and Benefits of roaming regulation
• Roaming forecast, future price trends in Europe
• Key Point Summary

Chapter Eight: Conclusions

• The future trends for mobile voice & data roaming
• SMS roaming services
• Voice roaming services
• Data roaming services
• Customer constraints on roaming service development
• The Top Ten Trends for Roaming into 2010 and beyond

Appendix One: A list of mobile operators included in this report

48 Tables and 33 Charts

Related Product:

Global Roaming Tariff Tracker