International roaming rip-off needs attention

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 13 August 2008 15:35

Opinion and Analysis

Skinner's observation that "Roaming price differentials can vary by 100 percent and Australian mobile carriers provide relatively clear roaming price information, yet few customers are willing to take advantage of these price savings" misses the point, I believe.

It seems to me that it's just that people are either rich enough to be able to afford roaming charges (or the company is paying), or too ignorant of what's on offer to take advantage of the differences between carriers.

Or - more likely - they simply don't use roaming because they know it's too expensive.

Anyone travelling overseas pr4obably better served by buying a prepaid SIM in the destination country and using that instead. Divert all calls to your regular number to voicemail, and leave callers a message with your overseas number if they want to contact you urgently.

Perhaps that's the real reason why Aussies don't worry about roaming costs when choosing a mobile carrier?

Such an arrangement has the added advantage of making the caller decide whether the matter is sufficiently urgent and important to justify an international call. (Yes, I know that in some countries the mobile user pays for calls received as well as made, but that's just a further incentive to keep calls brief!)

Another possibility is that they are increasingly using Skype or other VoIP software running on their notebooks and connected to the Internet wherever it is available.

Skinner may be right when he says international roaming is better regulated through bilateral (or maybe even multilateral) agreements, but in the absence of such arrangements it may be better to press ahead alone. As things stand, there's a strong incentive to leave your phone at home, or at least remove the local SIM while you're overseas.