Good news for residents of EU countries: European Parliament approved by a majority vote of the sharp decline in prices for roaming within the EEC. In 2008, the cost of outgoing roaming call is 46 cents, included - 22 cents, a year later - 43 and 19 cents respectively. When and how this might affect the Russian mobile users?
Impact is likely as early as next year. We have nothing to rejoice with you, prices for Russian tourists at best remain the same. At worst - will increase as European operators, willy-nilly will have to find ways to compensate for the loss. And to lose is that: Income European operators from roaming averages more than 10%. Forcible introduction of roaming prices will reduce profit by several times, that could trigger European operators to raise prices for non-European operators, including Russian. We have nothing to reply, tourist and business streams are incompatible: the Russians in Europe is going at times more than the Europeans in Russia. It is not excluded that the current summer-roaming price reduction will last for the foreseeable future.
Cost of call in another country depends on the prices set forth in the contract between "its" and "alien" by the operator, the price of minutes of conversation can go off-scale for 100 rubles. Of these foreign roaming partner gets price per minute of local calls, plus about 15-20 rubles, while the rest gets its "own" operator. Opportunities for maneuver in the price of Russian operators are not many, but they are.
Everything has ever been abroad with your phone are well aware of the speed with which fly away money from the account. Mobile operators worldwide conspiracy? To some extent - of course, and they (operators) do not even conceal it. Fortunately, you can always blame the roaming partner. Russian operators "nod" to the foreign ones, are - in Russian, like no one to blame and do anything. Convenient and advantageous position. Unfortunately, we are paying the price with you. The current year-roaming initiative Beeline makes thoughtful: it turns out, roaming coming to Russia, and incoming calls can cost at 28.5 rubles per minute. The operator works at a loss? Hard to believe. And if not at a loss, then how many of our favorite Sotovik typically receive income from their subscribers traveling? Rubles to 20-30 per minute in roaming?
On the other hand, SIM-cards of local operators has not been canceled, calls to Russia will be significantly cheaper. Gaining popularity so-called "tourist SIM-cards" - cards of European operators that are sold in Russia and the Russians prepared for use in Europe. Money saving considerable, but go with the "native" phone number is more convenient. Still cheaper to buy phone cards and calls from them in the local pay phones, but will have to sacrifice comfort.For the most technically advanced - Skype and its ilk, but here the question arises, why we go on vacation: a rest / tan or work in different ways to call home at the lowest possible price?
Communication expenses per month more than those vacation times for all the remaining 11 months, so the summer-roaming initiative operators are important to us. From 4 June to 31 August Beeline factor of 2 reduces the cost of calls to Turkey, Spain, Bulgaria, Greece and Cyprus, and the price of calls to any local network are the same: 28.5 rubles. per minute. And to send SMS-messages we can for 11 rubles. instead of 15 rubles. the usual time. "An amazing number of": the cost of a reduced-roaming SMS in the framework of the Beeline unexpectedly coincided with the current SMS-a price tag of MTS, and the price of minutes - with that for roamers with SIM-card Megaphone. Validity of the initiative - by the end of August. In Megafon-Moscow in the summer and early autumn for holidaymakers in Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Serbia, Montenegro, Turkey, Croatia, Cyprus and Malta will operate a special event "Vacation": every second minute of incoming calls while roaming is free. Ie to pay 29 rubles will have only the odd minute of incoming calls. True, the phone calls home will cost dearly, and for this purpose is better to buy a phone card on the spot. Validity of the initiative - by the end of September. MTS roaming rates have changed little (some time ago a little rose - made them "easier to read). Instead of costly discounts for subscribers prefer to spend money on a massive television advertising ovoid islands in Greece and France, the rocks in the form of eggs in Greece, haystacks in Portugal, etc. Advertising slogan - "Travel and stay in touch! This MTS! ". Perhaps a reasonable solution: information about discounts read unit, and TV watching everything.
Believe Dollars and minutes
Initiatives and promotional videos attract, but loves money account. Consider who, what and how much we really offers this season. Prices are in rubles, VAT included, offer valid only for the summer period and for a limited number of countries. Normal roaming rates look at the site operators. Billing is per minute.
MTS
Beeline
MegaFon
Incoming call
55
28,5
29 **
Calling in Russia
55
28,5
69
Local call in the country
21
28,5
29
SMS-message
11
11
15
GPRS-traffic for 1 MB *
430
512
358
* For roamers MTS and Beeline session is rounded up to 50 KB for roamers MegaFon-Moscow to 100 KB.
** Every second minute - for free
For comparison - the same plate, but without the summer discounts / initiatives.Roaming rates are for Europe.
MTS
Beeline
MegaFon
Incoming call
55
57
29
Calling in Russia
55
57
69
Local call in the country
21
29
29
SMS-message
11
15
15
GPRS-traffic for 1 MB *
430
512
358
* For roamers MTS and Beeline session is rounded up to 50 KB for roamers MegaFon-Moscow to 100 KB.
The conclusions one can make for himself. Obviously, for receiving incoming calls from a "spa" countries, the best option is SIM-card MegaFon (SIM-cards of local operators and travel SIM-cards do not consider here). For countries not included in the list of "soft" - too. As for outgoing calls, there is a little harder. In the case of "hitting" a preferential list Beeline for outgoing calls can be unequivocally recommend the SIM-card of the operator, if not the country in the list has not got - MTS is cheaper by almost 5%. Should I bother with call forwarding, purchase additional SIM-cards etc. - Each decides for itself. Probably, a savings of 20-30 rubles per minute will not hurt, even generous. Perhaps the easiest way will hit a preferential list of subscribers of Beeline: a certain amount of money lost in the incoming calls from Russia (compared with MegaFon), but no need for anything before going to take too valuable.
Hope for the ICQ-communication in the roaming not particularly necessary. The trouble is that in other countries, GPRS-session is used to break suspiciously often, ie, to pay for pieces of 50-100 kb have every few minutes. Technical background of such a phenomenon unknown to me, but personal experience in different countries he has repeatedly affirmed.
