Brazilian operators may soon be able to pay off regulatory fines of up to 3.5 billion Brazilian reais ($1.46 billion) through investment, which would help to offset around 14% of more than 25 billion Brazilian reais in tax charges and fines.
These charges and fines cover a number of telecoms service deficiencies and Anatel said that the types of investment carried out could be proposed by either Anatel or the operators themselves.
“The rules for the investments are not very rigid,” an Anatel spokesman told reporters. “The types of investment the companies might carry out are very broad.”
The fines suitable for this method of payback do not include those which operators have chosen to challenge in court, or those which have been finalised in administration by the regulator.
Brazilian operators Oi, Vivo, Claro and TIM Brasil could be considered for fee reductions under the plans.
