Ofcom Cuts Down On Mobile Phone Charges

By Author: williamgreen
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Customers who think they pay over the odds for their mobile phone calls to other networks and landlines will be thrilled with the latest cuts announced by Ofcom.

The regulator has decided that termination charges – the fee firms charge rivals for handling calls from their networks – must fall by 80 per cent over the next four years.

Cost of calling

Currently, mobile operators charge anything from 4.18p to 4.48p to deliver a call to another network. However, Ofcom wants this reduced to 0.69p by 2014-2015 and expects the cuts to be passed on to consumers.

It is expected that the reduction will occur in stages, beginning on April 1 when the termination rate for O2, 3UK, Vodafone and Everything Everywhere will be cut to 2.66p.

It is hoped that the new charging structure will benefit smaller mobile phone operators who should be able to offer more competitive prices. It should also reduce costs for landline companies to pass calls on to mobile phone networks.

The regulator is not concerned about the effect it will have on larger mobile phone operators. It states that while mobile phone ...
... companies will lose money from the reduction in charges they are earning more revenue from the rapid growth of data services such as text messaging.

Finding the best deal

The costs of using a mobile phone may be coming down, but that doesn’t mean that consumers should be complacent – they should still shop around at the end of each contract period to see if there is a more suitable tariff available.

When searching for a mobile phone deal, users should think about how they use their phone. For example, how many minutes on average do they use each month and at what time of day do they typically make calls? Do they make text messages more than they make calls? If the consumer is on a contract, do they use their inclusive minutes and texts each month; and if they’re on a pay-as-you-go deal, could they potentially save money by switching to a contract? Consumers should make a thorough analysis of how they use the phone to work out what sort of deal is best for their individual needs.

In addition, they should bear in mind that they don’t have to wait until the end of a contractual period to switch – contracts can be cancelled without charge at the end of the minimum term; and if this term is 12 months, consumers can provide written notice during the eleventh month.

As the mobile phone industry is so competitive its well worth looking out for special offers too. Many networks and mobile phone retailers offer special deals including free handsets and reduced monthly charges to entice new customers. 5hop5.co.uk regularly lists discount codes from the likes of 3 (UK), Carphone Warehouse, O2 UK, Orange and Vodafone in its mobile phone voucher code section, which could offer significant savings.

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