A decision, valid from 1 July, has been taken in order to ensure that consumers do not end up worrying about accidentally running up huge bills when they connect to the Internet using mobile networks via a phone or computer when abroad in the EU.

Travellers' data-roaming limit will be automatically set at €50 excluding VAT (unless they have chosen another limit - higher or lower).

Assessing the move, Jeremy Copp, vice president, Mobile Europe, comScore, says, "I would expect any initiative that provides consumers with greater transparency and control over their roaming charges to have a positive impact on mobile use of travel services."

EyeforTravel's Ritesh Gupta recently spoke to Copp about the new rules, the utility of mobile phones in Europe vis-a-vis the US and much more. Excerpts:

(In this interview, all data refers to comScore MobiLens data, three month average ending May 2010. Europe data covers EU5 - UK, FR, DE, ES, IT).

How do consumers wish to engage with travel companies via mobile in a market like Europe?

Jeremy Copp:

Our data shows that 9.8m Europeans accessed travel information via their mobile in May 2010, representing 4.3 percent of European mobile users. The most popular method of access is through mobile Internet sites with nearly 60 percent (5.8m) engaging through their browser. The next most popular access method is through SMS followed by mobile applications; European consumers were almost 3 times as likely to accessed travel services via a browser, compared to an application. However, accessing travel sites via application is growing fastest of the three methods when compared to one year ago.

It is being highlighted that the rise of smartphones with browsers which can both display desktop sites and make it easy for users to interact with them has been a significant development. Considering the latest gadgets and the number of options available on web for travel planning and booking, which according to you is the most significant development in terms of the way consumers consume content or engage for travel requirements?

Jeremy Copp:

The growth in highly capable smartphones in the market has helped to drive consumer interaction with travel services via their mobile phones: whilst accounting for only 25% of the installed base of active phones in Europe, 54% of consumers accessing travel services did so from a smartphone in May 2010. The number of European consumers accessing travel services via smartphones grew by 125% year-on-year to May 2010.

For long, the industry has indicated that that there are still two issues that need to change: There need to be more standards over the whole industry so that development is easier and faster, and the network providers need to reduce the data rates especially for roaming but also the flat rates in their home markets as the customers are afraid of unknown cost for the usage of mobile services. What do you make of the challenges as of today?

Jeremy Copp:

Comparing the European market with that in the USA, our data shows that the greater penetration of unlimited data tariffs has positive impact on consumer engagement through mobile browsing and application usage. The US market is ahead in this respect – 25% of consumers have an unlimited data tariff compared to 6.5% in Europe – so we would expect growth in Europe coupled with the increased availability of smartphones at lower tariff price points to fuel the growth of mobile engagement with travel services.

The European Union has finalised new roaming rules, putting a cap on mobile roaming charges. Travellers' data-roaming limit will be automatically set at €50 excluding VAT (unless they have chosen another limit - higher or lower). How do you assess this move from travel industry's perspective?

Jeremy Copp:

I would expect any initiatives that provide consumers with greater transparency and control over their roaming charges to have a positive impact on mobile use of travel services.

Location is the holy grail of the mobile experience. One of the major developments this year has been the availability of free navigation systems on mobile handsets. And the way applications are mushrooming around location-based services, one can only expect more excitement in this arena. What do you make of such developments from the travel industry's perspective?

Jeremy Copp:

Some 25.6m European mobile users accessed maps on their device in May 2010, with the availability of free navigation systems fuelling a 100% year-on-year growth in this number. This increased use of mobile devices whilst travelling offers a growing opportunity for the travel industry to engage with consumers through their phones for marketing and to offer relevant, localised services.

1 in 3 queries on a mobile phone has local intent, indicating a powerful desire on the part of consumers for location-specific information. Has the industry realised that focusing on location is just one of the ways to best use mobile capability to drive optimal consumer response to your efforts?

Jeremy Copp:

The fact that consumers engage with travel services in a variety of ways with their phones indicates that the travel industry is engaging with users for more than just location-specific information. The most popular travel brands accessed by European mobile users are booking services – 30% of mobile consumers who accessed travel services used Lastminute.com or Expedia, with smaller proportions using those services providing information more likely to be used whilst travelling.

Recently, a travel guide publisher in the US introduced travel guides for iPhone, featuring Augmented Reality feature along side user-generated content and automated trip planner (the guide suggests the most personalised trip). How do you assess such developments related to applications for smart phones?

Jeremy Copp:

An ever-increasing proportion of European smartphone owners are using applications – some 44% in May 2010 – with 64% of those who used a travel application having a smartphone. This growth in all types of mobile application use offers an ever-broadening opportunity for the travel industry to engage with consumers in creative ways that deliver significant value.

Google believes that customers will increasingly demand an end-to-end engagement across a range of platforms, and to be able to research, consume and share travel information on whichever device they find most useful at a particular stage of their decision-making process. What do you expect from mobile as a channel for travel planning and booking going forward?

Jeremy Copp:

There is significant growth in the use of travel planning and booking services by European mobile users – usage of Lastminute.com and Expedia combined grew 96% year-on-year to May 2010 but still only accounted for 1.2% of all mobile consumers. This indicates that there is still considerable opportunity for expansion in services for travel planning and booking via mobile phones.

Jeremy Copp, vice president, Mobile Europe, comScore is scheduled to speak at the forthcoming two-day Online Marketing and Social Media Strategies for Travel Summit Europe 2010 (5-6, October) to be held in Prague.

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Meredith Pistulka
Reuters Events (former EyeforTravel)