[jackgavigan]

Well, the EU decided that it was going to ban roaming charges!

The only reason customers would sign up to ARPs is to avoid expensive roaming charges. It's been apparent since before the ARP/LBO legislation came into effect that the EU was planning to eliminate roaming charges altogether within a few years. So, potential ARPs were faced with the prospect of operating for just a couple of years before their market effectively vanished.

It also didn't help that the mobile network operators dragged their heels on entering into agreements with the ARPs that did try to enter the market.