Mobile phone Roam@Home petition

freestyleskier

I think it is crazy that UK mobiles are limited to using only 1 of the 4 mobile networks in the UK (which are EE, O2, Three and Vodafone). When we go abroad within the EU we can use any foreign network with our credit as if we are at home, and EU phones can use any of the 4 UK networks so they get a better service than we do. My proposal is for a Roam@Home system so that when our normal network is not available then we can roam on the other 3 UK networks in the same way that other EU phones can.


Click this link to sign the petition:
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/236028/sponsors/new?token=QTHKPqH4OTOyEzJX2dzI



A related MSE article is here: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/phones/piggybacking/


Thanks,
freestyleskier

pmduk

Your link to the MSE article doesn't work.

PHK

We already have emergency roaming.

If roam at home was implemented then bills would rise to pay for the extra costs in increasing capacity . You only need to look at markets where this already happens to see what the charges will be like.

Personally, I would prefer if Ofcom was allowed to continue holding operators to their coverage commitments and there was a reduction in NIMBY complaints about new phone masts.

[Deleted User]

freestyleskier wrote: »

I think it is crazy that UK mobiles are limited to using only 1 of the 4 mobile networks in the UK (which are EE, O2, Three and Vodafone). When we go abroad within the EU we can use any foreign network with our credit as if we are at home, and EU phones can use any of the 4 UK networks so they get a better service than we do.

Can other EU phone users use any of their home networks when in their own countries or are they restricted the same way we are at home?

JJ_Egan

Where is the signup to vote NO ??

wongataa

freestyleskier wrote: »

I think it is crazy that UK mobiles are limited to using only 1 of the 4 mobile networks in the UK (which are EE, O2, Three and Vodafone). When we go abroad within the EU we can use any foreign network with our credit as if we are at home,

This is not my experience. You can't roam on any foreign network abroad. Only certain ones will work. Those will depend on who your home network is.

pmduk

Surely this would provide a major disincentive for further expansion by networks?

Ian011

Competition has failed and has been seen to fail. Networks have failed to provide coverage in low population areas and have no incentive to cover these areas.

The infrastucture of the mobile phone system should be a single network with mandated coverage requirements with the various providers then selling services that utilise that network.

pmduk

Ian011 wrote: »

Competition has failed and has been seen to fail. Networks have failed to provide coverage in low population areas and have no incentive to cover these areas.

The infrastucture of the mobile phone system should be a single network with mandated coverage requirements with the various providers then selling services that utilise that network.

30 years into the industry how do you propose to produce that? With central ownership, we'd have an Openreach type organisation in charge of repairs. It's not working well for broadband, why would it work well for Mobile? Sorry, it's a great idea, but on paper only.

System

pmduk wrote: »

30 years into the industry how do you propose to produce that? With central ownership, we'd have an Openreach type organisation in charge of repairs. It's not working well for broadband, why would it work well for Mobile? Sorry, it's a great idea, but on paper only.

Actually enforce geographic coverage areas.

Large Scandinavian countries (with GB area but Scotland's population) have vastly superior coverage.

I'm sure we'll have the usual (British) tosh of have the usual prices will have to massively rise but necessity is the mother of invention - domestic roaming, network sharing and low frequency coverage can all work.

Jon_01

wongataa wrote: »

This is not my experience. You can't roam on any foreign network abroad. Only certain ones will work. Those will depend on who your home network is.

Yeah, the Op has that wrong.

You can't roam on any network when away, you can only roam when your home network has a roaming agreement with a network in the area you're in. They only tend to have them with one of two of the networks in any country.