Brazil to block unlicensed phones

Brazil will block all unlicensed phones in the next few months.

The measure will be implemented in partnership with telecom operators and with cell phone manufacturers, with the timetable still under discussion, said telecom regulator Anatel.

The electronics industry has been calling for stricter measures to fight phone piracy for several years.

In 2014, telcos and Anatelcame up with an integrated device management system that enabled the tracking of unlicensed phones via the SIM cards, which read the handset's serial number, or International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI), and lists it on the GSM association database.

Back then, Anatel ruled out blocking the phones, and said any further measures would be previsouly disclosed to users. Now the watchdog says an awareness campaign will inform users in advance of the blocking. Operators will have to warn customers that their device is not licensed, with a 75-day notice before blocking it.

Phones without a valid Anatel permit and IMEI certification will be blocked. Most are believed to come from China in the form of cheap imitations of famous brands.

Anatel estimates companies will start sending messages with warnings to users starting at the end of July, which means the first devices could be blocked by October. One of the concerns of the telcos is that there will be increasing demand from users to call centers.

Recently, Anatel tightened its grip over counterfeit devices on sale online, and ordered the withdrawal of certain products from e-commerce platform MercadoLibre.

COMPLAINTS

In related news, Anatel said a total of 258,800 complaints against telecom companies were registered during the month of April with the agency. The figure is down by 19.9% year-on-year

All major telecom services have seen a consistent reduction in complaints, but fixed telephony led the way with less 31.8% grievances.

The major mobile telephony operators registered a drop in complaints, except for TIM, which saw a growth of 12.9%.