MegaFon, Russia's second biggest mobile operator, will increase roaming charges in 51 countries by more than 300 percent on Dec. 8, the company said in a statement Thursday.
Charges will rise from 9 rubles ($0.2) a minute to 29 rubles a minute in the listed countries, which include popular European tourist destinations such as Turkey, Cyprus, Greece, Italy and the Czech Republic. Rates will also increase in a number of former Soviet countries, such as Armenia, Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova.
Even with the higher roaming charges, MegaFon is still cheaper its two main rivals: VimpelCom and MTS. MTS charges its customers anywhere from 65 to 89 rubles ($1.4 to $1.9) a minute for international roaming, while VimpelCom's Beeline brand bills 69 rubles ($1.5) a minute.
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