Earlier this year, a consumer in Western Sweden received a bill for SEK 55 000 after his modem connected to a Norwegian mast. The consumer was of the impression that he was surfing at a fixed rate as usual, but instead he was charged per downloaded megabyte by the Norwegian operator.
While on holiday, many people bring their PCs with them when travelling or surf using their mobile telephone. This is why PTS, the Swedish Consumer Agency and the Swedish Consumer Bureau for Telecom and Internet (KTIB) are sending out a warning that carelessness can be very costly.
“Just downloading the Internet edition of a Swedish daily newspaper can cost SEK 70 if you connect to a foreign operator who charges per downloaded megabyte. Reading e-mail on your mobile or downloading additional maps to your GPS device can also be very expensive if you are taking a car trip in Europe since they are charged as data traffic,” says Olof Bjurö, head of the consumer issues section at PTS.
Several operators offer consumers a blocking service to prevent foreign traffic to their mobile Internet services. Some operators have this blocking service activated when a modem is sold. Keep in mind that a blocking service is not normally activated automatically if you have a business subscription. Mobile telephones also lack an automatic blocking service in connection with surfing abroad.
New EU rules were implemented last summer stipulating the cost of placing mobile calls abroad, and a price ceiling called a ‘Eurotariff’ entered into force. The Eurotariff nevertheless only applies to telephony, not text messaging or data traffic.
The Swedish Consumer Agency, PTS and KTIB advise consumers to ask their operators how to avoid being involuntarily connected to a foreign operator.
For more information, please contact:
Olof Bjurö, Consumer Issues Section, PTS, tel: 070-811 40 05
Magnus Karpe, Swedish Consumer Agency, tel: 054-19 40 46
Andreas Evestedt, Swedish Consumer Bureau for Telecom and Internet, tel: 070-713 48 59
The Swedish Post and Telecom Agency (PTS) monitors the electronic communications and postal sectors in Sweden. The term ‘electronic communications’ includes telephony, the Internet and radio. The Agency works with consumer and competition issues, efficient utilisation of resources and secure communications. Read more at www.pts.se.