L 171/32 Official Journal of the European Union 29.6.2007 REGULATION (EC) No 717/2007 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 27 June 2007 on roaming on public mobile telephone networks within the Community and amending Directive 2002/21/EC (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EURO- PEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu- nity, and in particular Article 95 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1), Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (2, Whereas: The high level of the prices payable by users of public mobile telephone networks, such as students, business travellers and tourists, when using their mobile telephones when travelling abroad within the Community is a matter of concern for national regulatory authorities, as well as for consumers and the Community institutions. The exces- sive retail charges are resulting from high wholesale charges levied by the foreign host network operator and also, in many cases, from high retail mark-ups charged by the customer’s own network operator. Reductions in wholesale charges are often not passed on to the retail customer. Although some operators have recently intro- duced tariff schemes that offer customers more favour- able conditions and lower prices, there is still evidence that the relationship between costs and prices is not such as would prevail in fully competitive markets. (1) OJ C 324, 30.12.2006, p. 42. (%) Opinion of the European Parliament of 23 May 2007 (not yet pub- lished in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 25 June 2007. (2)  The creation of a European social, educational and cul- tural area based on the mobility of individuals should facilitate communication between people in order to build a real ‘Europe for Citizens’. (3)  Directive 2002/19/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on access to, and intercon- nection of, electronic communications networks and asso- ciated facilities (Access Directive) (3), Directive 2002/20/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on the authorisation of electronic commu- nications networks and services (Authorisation Direc- tive) (4), Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on a common regu- latory framework for electronic communications net- works and services (Framework Directive) (°), Directive 2002/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Coun- cil of 7 March 2002 on universal service and users’ rights relating to electronic communications networks and ser- vices (Universal Service Directive) (¢) and Directive 2002/58EC of the European Parliament and of the Coun- cil of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic com- munications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications) (7) (hereinafter together referred to as ‘the 2002 regulatory framework for electronic communi- cations’) aim to create an internal market for electronic communications within the Community while ensuring a high level of consumer protection through enhanced competition. (4)  This Regulation is not an isolated measure, but comple- ments and supports, insofar as Community-wide roaming is concerned, the rules provided for by the 2002 regula- tory framework for electronic communications. That framework has not provided national regulatory authori- ties with sufficient tools to take effective and decisive action with regard to the pricing of roaming services within the Community and thus fails to ensure the smooth functioning of the internal market for roaming services. This Regulation is an appropriate means of correcting this situation. ) OJ L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 7. G (% O] L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 21. () O] L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 33. () O] L 108, 24.4.2002, p. 51. () OJ L 201, 31.7.2002, p. 37. Directive as amended by Directive 2006/24/EC (O] L 105, 13.4.2006, p. 54).