BRUSSELS - The European Commission has confirmed that all of Europe's mobile phone operators are now ready to offer capped 'Eurotariffs', limiting the amount of money they can charge for roaming calls within the EU.
Estonia's EMT was one of the last two operators to reply to a questionnaire the Commission sent out in July.
The good news is that according to the EC's table of compliance, Baltic operators compare well with their counterparts across the continent. The maximum charge per minute allowed by the new rules is 49 euro cents to make calls and 24 euro cents to receive calls.
Estonia's EMT matches the requirements precisely, while Elisa betters the call rate by charging 47 cents. Tele2 goes even further in its reductions by providing a receive rate of 23 cents as well.
In Lithuania, Bite quotes rates of 48.8 and 23.8 cents for calling and receiving respectively. Tele2 edges it with 48.6 and 23.6 cents. Omnitel states that it is within the required limits without giving figures.
The cheapest Baltic tariffs are now in Latvia 's or rather, they will be from August 30 when they come into effect. LMT does the minimum required to comply with the regulations at 49 and 24 cents. Bite offers 48.2 and 22.9 cents, but the most competitive rates are quoted by Tele2 at 45.5 and 22.9 euro cents.
Overall, Baltic prices are on a par with European averages. The best rate currently on offer is from the UK's 3 network with prices of 31.57 euro cents for calling and just 12.63 euro cents for receiving calls.
