Home > Technology News > FSB welcomes EU action on mobile phone charges

FSB welcomes EU action on mobile phone charges

Published On 24 May 2007 at 09:20:48

Small and medium-sized enterprises from the UK that do business in Europe have welcomed the EU's decision to cap the roaming charges levied by mobile phone companies.

Earlier this week, the EU capped the cost of making a call in Europe at 33p a minute and to receive calls at 16p a minute.

"This is great news for small businesses mine that operate across EU member states and find charges for making and receiving calls hugely expensive," said Tina Sommer, the Federations of Small Businesses' (FSB) EU affairs chairman.

"MPs today voted to break down another barrier to the Single Market but they must remain vigilant to prevent increased domestic call costs from mobile providers."

Ms Sommer added that around 25 per cent of the UK's SMEs also operate in Europe, meaning that the capped charges will have a significant effect on many businesses.

However, the FSB expressed concern that another EU policy due to be debated in the near future could have a detrimental effect on UK SMEs.

"Plans to reverse the way consumer law is applied to sales over the internet could make trading in the Single Market too expensive and risky for millions of small businesses in the UK," Ms Sommer explained.

"This would also hit consumer choice and the ability of shoppers to do online research into prices to make sure they get the best deal."

 

Related Technology News:

• Office workers 'waste time emailing'
  8 June 2007 at 08:55:35
  Office workers - including those at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) - spend nearly ten years of their working life dealing with emails, a new report suggests.
• 'Spam spikes' target SMEs
  6 June 2007 at 12:37:55
  Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK are being targeted in more 'spam spikes', which are harming their operations, a new report claims.
• More SME owners apply to protect their ideas
  4 June 2007 at 14:11:25
  Television programmes like Dragon's Den are encouraging more and more people to try to start their own small business, official figures indicate.
• SMEs 'think customers are more demanding now'
  1 June 2007 at 16:57:13
  The owners of the UK's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) think that it is harder now to run a successful business than it was in the past.
• SMEs 'unhappy with company websites'
  29 May 2007 at 12:23:11
  The majority of the UK's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) do not think that their company website truly reflects their brand, a new survey revealed.
• Consumers reveal their top business grumbles
  22 May 2007 at 09:01:29
  The owners of UK small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) need to make sure their businesses have excellent channels of consumer communication if they hope to be successful, a new study has revealed.