取消長途和漫游費 (qǔxiāo chángtú hé mànyóufèi): Canceling long-distance and roaming fees for domestic calls

Delivering this year's Government Work Report at the opening of the current session of the National People's Congress, China's top legislative body, Premier Li Keqiang said on Sunday that China will cancel the long-distance and roaming fees for domestic calls before the end of this year.

Fees for long-distance calls and roaming fees have been charged for more than two decades in China. Mobile phone users are always charged extra fees if they use telecom services in places other than where the phone number is registered, which can mean big telecom bills.

Canceling the long-distance and roaming fees for domestic calls aims to accelerate the construction of a faster and lower-cost information network. It is just one of the measures intended to promote the deeper development of a digital economy.

Acknowledging that "in the internet age, faster and more cost-effective information networks are crucial to the development of every sector", the report pledged to increase broadband coverage and lower the cost of other internet services.

On Monday China's three telecom providers, China Mobile Communications, China United Network Communication Group and China Telecommunications Corp announced they will stop charging for domestic long-distance and roaming fees on Oct 1 in order to push industrial transformation and boost the real economy.