The average price of an operator’s best European data roaming tariffs dropped “almost 20 percent” between April 2011 and June 2011, as a variety of differently structured offers indicate a market that is “competitive, growing fast and finding its feet,” according to a study published by the GSMA. According to data collected from 101 mobile operator websites during June 2011 by management consultancy AT Kearney, the European average of the best available postpaid tariffs is less than EUR1 per 1MB for a “medium usage 10MB basket.” It was noted that for heavy users, who are most likely to shop around for the best deals, prices can fall to EUR0.45 per 1MB when purchasing 100MB data roaming allowances.

Tom Phillips, chief regulatory officer of the GSMA, noted that: “These price movements are good news for consumers and evidence that operators in this fast-growing, innovative market are increasingly responsive to consumer demand for value.” The GSMA is tracking the charges to create its Data Roaming Price Basket Index, which will be published every two months, to provide EU legislators with a current snapshot of “dynamism and pricing innovation” in the retail data roaming market. It takes the best deals by operator and by market, and translates these into per 1MB prices for a range of different user profiles.