Mobile phone overseas charges under EC scrutiny

Telecoms operators could be told to reduce their charges for using mobile phone services overseas, after the European Commission (EC) launched an investigation into whether the costs are justified.

With the cost of mobile phone calls across national borders forced down by the EC earlier this year, but they remain higher than connecting to the web and using voice over internet protocol (VoIP).

And now in a further blow to mobile operators, the EC has turned its attention to mobile phone data transfer services.

This follows complaints from consumers that sending text messages, downloading music or surfing the net on their mobile was much more expensive when abroad than in the UK, with moneysupermarket.com suggesting these services can cost "more than twice the price".

Rob Barnes, the head of mobiles for the price comparison website, said: "Customers are often not aware of the vast expense of texting or using the internet when travelling overseas and we believe that networks should do more to inform people of the high costs involved."