Brussels, 22/04/2009 (Agence Europe) - As expected, the European Parliament adopted the report by Adina-Ioana Valean (ALDE, Romania) on roaming (by the wide majority of 646 votes to 22, with 9 abstentions) on Wednesday 22 April. The new regulation will mean large cuts in charges for calls, texts and mobile internet surfing from 1 July. The text does not fix charges at rates set by the EU but sets ceilings beneath which mobile operators could compete by offering lower prices (see EUROPE 9874 and 9869). Expiry date was set for 30 June 2012. “I am glad that all parties endorsed a concrete first reading agreement so that European consumers can fully benefit from this new regulation by the beginning of this summer,” said Valean. “After this vote, Europe is now clearly the most attractive continent in the world for mobile phone users. I expect this to translate very swiftly into even stronger growth for mobile data services in the EU,” commented European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. The Commission will assess the situation by mid-2011 to check if consumers have enjoyed real improvement on charges and if small independent operators have managed to carve a place for themselves on the market. The Commission was also called on to give consideration to options other than a regulation to create a single roaming market. (I.L./transl.rt)