Kroes stands firm in roam charges fight

Neelie Kroes, the European Union’s telecoms commissioner, is set for a battle with Europe’s former monopolist operators, as she vows to stand by her far-reaching reforms, including cutting mobile roaming fees for consumers.

She said roaming charges were outrageous and that mobile operators had to seek new business models to survive. “Telecom companies need to start thinking in an innovative way, outside the box,” Kroes said. “The days of roaming are over, they need to accept that we live in a new digital era.” Kroes will tell the industry that the investor community, including large banks in the City of London, had backed her single telecom market legislation, which aims to boost investment and economic growth by knocking down national barriers across the 28 country bloc.