In December 2022, telecommunications prices, measured through the respective segment group of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), decreased by 1.0% compared to the previous month. This decrease was due to changes in some bundled offers.
Compared to the same month of the previous year, prices increased by 0.02%. This variation in telecommunications prices was 9.6 percentage points lower than the change in CPI (9.6%).
The average rate of change in telecommunications prices over the last twelve months was 1.8%. This was 6.1 percentage points below CPI (7.8%).
By subgroup, according to Eurostat, the average rates of change over the last twelve months were 3.6% for bundled services and 0.2% for mobile telephone services. In the case of bundled services, the rate was 2.6 percentage points higher than in 2021.
In December 2022, the average rate of change over the last twelve months in telecommunications prices was higher in Portugal than as reported for the European Union as a whole (+1.7 percentage points). Portugal recorded the 7th highest variation in prices (21st lowest) among EU countries. The country reporting the biggest price increase was Poland (+4.5%) while the biggest decrease occurred in the Netherlands (-4.4%). On average, telecommunications prices in the EU increased by 0.03%.
By subgroup, the average rate of change in prices over the last twelve months in Portugal was 2.6 percentage points higher than the EU average for bundled services and 1.2 percentage points higher for mobile telephone services.
From a long-term perspective and in cumulative terms, telecommunications prices have increased by 9.7% since the end of 2010, while CPI increased by 23.0%. Between 2015 and 2019, the cumulative change in telecommunications prices was higher than the cumulative change in CPI due to “price adjustments” made by the main providers. As of 2019, the narrowing divergence between the two indexes was mainly due to the entry into force of Regulation (EU) 2018/1971https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=1464946 of the European Parliament and of the Council, which imposed a maximum price on intra-EU international calls and SMS messages.
If it were not for the price reduction in intra-EU calls, it is estimated that telecommunications prices would have increased by 13.3% since the end of 2010 (9.7 percentage points below the variation of the CPI in this period.
Starting in late 2021, CPI began to increase at a faster rate than telecommunications prices.
Between the end of 2009 and December 2022, telecommunications prices in Portugal increased by 7.7%, while in the EU as a whole they decreased by 10.0%. A more detailed comparative analysis shows that, between the end of 2009 and December 2022, telecommunications prices decreased by 15.3% in Germany, 8.1% in Luxembourg and 0.8% in Belgium.
The lowest monthly charges are offered by NOWO in eight cases out of a total of 13 services/offers; MEO and Vodafone reported the lowest monthly charges for four and two types of services/offers respectively.
In year-on-year terms, there were nine services/offers with price increases and one with a decrease. The following price variation stands out:
- The lowest monthly charge for subscription television increased by 7.6% due to the discontinuation of single-play subscription TV offers from NOS. In December 2022, the lowest monthly charge for subscription television was for a single-play offer from MEO.
Compared to the same month of the previous year and by provider, MEO increased the monthly charge for seven services/offers and decreased the monthly charge for one service/offer (waiver of the first monthly charge of the Uzo offer). Meanwhile, NOS and Vodafone increased the minimum monthly charge for one service/offer.
Consult the statistical report:
- Trend in telecommunications prices - December 2022 https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=1740639
