A new tile from Brazil for Telecom Italia. The Minister of Communications, Paulo Bernardo, reports the Financial Times, has urged Anatel, the sector's authority, to step up the investigation into an alleged fraud to the detriment of consumers. Tim Brazil is accused of having used the practice of deliberately interrupting calls from customers' mobile phones between March and May. The unfair practice would have been justified by the Infinity tariff plans based on the number of calls and not on the duration.
"A thorough investigation is needed", the minister declared in a Senate hearing, adding: "It is clear that if the violations were ascertained, the competence would pass from Anatel to the judicial authority". During the hearing Tim defended himself against the accusations: the frequent interruptions of the calls have technical explanations, including the exhaustion of the batteries.
The investigation comes after Tim was fined last month, together with Mexico's Claoro and Oy (controlled by Portugal Telecom) in 19 states out of 27 for alleged disservices. In view of the World Cup and the Olympics, the Brazilian market is among the most promising in a global context.
