Pre-paid sim card providers stop selling due to identity regulations

Two providers of pre-paid sim cards for mobile phones will stop selling them because of new regulations that oblige providers to register identity details from anyone buying the cards. Aldi Talk, a subsidiary of the supermarket group, said it was unable to carry out the registration formalities in its shops.

The change to the rules comes as part of the battle against terrorism, making it impossible to use mobile phones anonymously. In future, every mobile phone in use will be attached to a personal identity.

A check by the telephone regulator BIPT showed four providers were still not in line with the new regulations. Neither Aldi Talk nor Simyo, which is owned by Telenet, was implicated, but the two providers have now taken the decision to withdraw from the market from early June.

According to consumer organisation Test-Achats, the pair are often the most advantageous formulas available to users of pre-paid sim cards.

Photo: Ingimage