In the first half of 2018, ANACOM ruled on 67 cases with breach proceedings - about a third of these ended with the application of fines. In the first six months of 2018, fines applied by ANACOM totalled 1.3 million euros.
Among the cases that led to the application of fines are those relating to breaches of the Regulamento de Portabilidade (Portability Regulation), cases relating to non-compliance with the rules on complaint books and priority customer service, as well as cases relating to non-compliance with rules governing equipment unblocking. Fines also resulted from cases involving beaches of rules governing notification of amendments to electronic communications service contracts, breaches of the legal regime governing call centres, and breaches of rules governing the use of numbering ranges, as well as breaches of obligations under the RDAO.
In the same period, 277 processes were opened as a result of reported breaches in various areas, the overwhelming majority of which were related to the regime governing radio and electronic communications equipment and governing the placement and availability of such equipment in the market and putting it into service (105 processes). Other processes related to enforcement of the regime governing installation of telecommunications infrastructure in buildings (ITED) (90 processes) and to the breach of service provider obligations to report information to ANACOM (25 processes).
Meanwhile, 28% of cases with breach proceedings were related to the radio amateur service and 25% were due to non-compliance in the scope of the radio broadcasting service. Breaches of Lei das Comunicações Eletrónicas (Electronic Communications Law), especially non-compliance with the obligation to provide information to ANACOM, violation of rules concerning complaint books, and adoption of unfair commercial practices were among other issues that led to the instigation of breach proceedings.
As a rule, the cases instigated by ANACOM are based on infringement reports that have been brought to its attention through various channels, particularly: market enforcement actions and spectrum monitoring and control work carried out by ANACOM, actions developed as part of ANACOM's work supervising and monitoring the electronic communications and postal services market, complaints received, accusations received from Ministério Público (Public Prosecutor), courts and other regulators, reports and cases referred to ANACOM by the police (PSP and GNR).
