Vodafone cuts mobile data roaming costs in Europe
Vodafone has announced much lower pricing for using a smartphone whilst travelling in Europe, offering new daily and monthly rates.
A statement from the company’s group headquarters said customers who travel occasionally can take a domestic data plan abroad for EUR 2 per day, which represents a cost reduction of up to 60% over existing plans and includes an increase to the data allowance.
It said alternatively, frequent travelers can select to take a price plan which includes data roaming within their monthly domestic package.
Vittorio Colao, Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone, was quoted as saying “this is the year of the smartphone and we want our 35 million European data users to feel free to use their devices in Europe in the same way as they do at home.”
Colao said “we expect smartphone sales in Europe to grow from 32 per cent today to more than 70 per cent by 2013, and we want to drive that growth with what we believe to be the best value, market-leading roaming data packages.”
He said the new plans are being rolled-out in Vodafone’s major European markets during November and December 2010, in time for the winter holiday season, and across the Company’s entire European footprint by summer, next year.
All consumer and business customers on the daily offer will be able to access domestic price plans in Vodafone’s European countries plus France, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria.
Business monthly customers will be able to include data roaming across the whole of Europe within their domestic monthly package and consumer monthly customers can use the new price plans in Vodafone countries as well as France, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria.
Vodafone’s European countries include: Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and the UK.
Pundits in Ghana say they are monitoring to see what package Vodafone will give Ghanaians on data as the country chalks growth in data services soon.
By Samuel Dowuona