News 2001
Virgin Mobile introduces cheaper international call rates from home to abroad
26/06/2001
Summer holidaymakers also benefit with value calls back to UK
There's good news for those who want to use their mobile phones abroad this year, and also for those in the UK who want to keep in touch with friends and family overseas.
Virgin Mobile has simplified its prices on calls from overseas back to the UK, and also those made from the UK to abroad, making Virgin Mobile one of the cheapest options for international callers.
Calling home from abroad
For travellers and holidaymakers Virgin Mobile has introduced a range of flat-rate charges for calls back to the UK (and for receiving calls while abroad). The new simplified tariffs make the cost of calling home cheap, easier to understand and budget for.
Previously, roaming customers were bamboozled by an array of different roaming charges which depended on:
- the host network
- peak/off-peak prices
- call set-up fees
- minimum call duration charges
- and the exchange rate
Now, when Virgin Mobile customers are abroad they know that the cost they'll be charged will be fixed for the country they are in, and not dependent on which network they are roaming on, making it far easier to calculate the cost of your calls when you travel.
Virgin Mobile advises those mobile users who regularly make calls abroad from their mobile phones to take a close look at their call costs to see how they stack up against Virgin Mobile's prices. While some of Virgin Mobile's call prices may seem similar to other network operators, the call price Virgin Mobile quotes is the only price customers will pay. This is because, unlike other networks, Virgin Mobile doesn't believe in charging customers a monthly fee1 for having an international option on their phone. Virgin Mobile's transparent pricing policy means customers won't be caught out by hidden charges or stung by line rentals of any sort!
| Tariff (Per minute) | Republic of Ireland | Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man | European Union | Rest of Europe | ||||
Was | Now | Was | Now | Was | Now | Was | Now | |
From UK | 40p | 15p | 15p | 15p | 40p | 40p | 40p | 40p |
To UK from | Varied | 40p | Varied | 40p | Varied | 55p | Varied | 65p |
Receiving a call in | 40p | 20p | 40p | 20p | 40p | 30p | 40p | 30p |
SMS to UK from | Varied | 30p | Varied | 30p | Varied | 30p | Varied | 30p |
Receiving SMS from | free | free | free | free | free | free | free | free |
| Tariff (Per minute) | America | Australia | Far East* | |||
| Was | Now | Was | Now | Was | Now | |
| From UK | 20p | 20p | 20p | 20p | 80p | 40p |
| To UK from | Varied | 100p | Varied | 55p | Varied | Depends on country |
| Receiving a call in | Varied | 100p | 20p | 20p | Varied | Depends on country |
| SMS to UK from | Varied | 30p | Varied | 30p | Varied | Depends on country |
| Receiving SMS from | free | free | free | free | free | free |
Calling from the UK to overseas
Calling abroad with Virgin Mobile has never been cheaper. Calls to the Republic of Ireland are just 15p a minute, and calls to Australia and the USA are some of the cheapest around - even beating BT landlines - at just 20p a minute (see table below). And calls on Virgin Mobile from the UK to the Far East have been halved - now costing just 40p a minute.
Tom Alexander, managing director of Virgin Mobile, said: "At Virgin Mobile we offer simple but competitive pricing and what you see is always what you get. Our customers are able to calculate exactly how much they are paying for their international calls and can make their calls safe in the knowledge that they are paying some of the cheapest international call charges around. In fact, our call costs are so cheap that it is even cheaper to use a Virgin Mobile to call Australia and New Zealand than using a BT landline!2 We aim to maintain our cheap pricing to ensure that our customers always get the best possible deals on all of their call costs."
Virgin Mobile offers the added incentive that all calls made from the UK qualify for Virgin Mobile's new Big Bonus whereby customers who spend over £30 a month using their phone receive 10% of this total as airtime credit the following month. And that's not all. All new customers that connect to Virgin Mobile before the end of June 2001, will receive back that 31 day total in airtime credit the following month. Time to get back in touch with family overseas?
