The European Parliament, EU member states and the European Commission have come to an agreement to enable people to use their online subscriptions when travelling within the EU. The agreement comes just a week after they agreed to place caps on wholesale roaming charges.

The ‘portability’ rules will enable consumers to access their online content services when they travel in the EU, just like they do at home.

“People who have subscribed to their favourite series, music and sports events at home will be able to enjoy them when they travel in Europe. This is a new important step in breaking down barriers in the Digital Single Market,” said Andrus Ansip, VP of the Digital Single Market.

He continued: “Agreements are now needed on our other proposals to modernise EU copyright rules and ensure a wider access to creative content across borders. I count on the European Parliament and Member States to make it happen”.

Commissioner Tibor Navracsics, in charge of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, added: “Digital technologies provide new opportunities to enjoy cultural content on the go, and people are eager to use them.

“This balanced solution is an encouraging sign for our efforts to build a Digital Single Market that offers new opportunities for both creators and consumers.”

The regulation will come into force at the beginning of 2018, a year before the UK’s scheduled exit from Union. It is not yet clear whether the rules will apply to the UK post-Brexit but, if the roaming charges are anything to go by, it is very unlikely it will. A leaked EU document revealed that roaming caps would not apply to the UK following Brexit unless “transitional arrangements” were made.