Three operators in Portugal have already confirmed that they will increase prices in 2023, applying the 7.8% inflation rate set by INE. Prices can increase up to 12 euros in some packages and DECO says that with the costs of early termination of contracts, the “perfect cocktail is created for consumers to remain with the same operator, even if they are dissatisfied” portugal telecom prices 2023

Rising prices for goods and services are affecting most consumers and triggering inflation, with costs exploding and in many cases exceeding the general inflation rate. The increases now reach telecommunications in February, where MEO, NOS and Vodafone have already reported a price increase according to the Consumer Price Index (IPC), published by the National Institute of Statistics, which is 7.8%, and this makes some tariffs more than 12 euros per month.

MEO was the first operator to proceed with the communication of price updates, to be applied in February, excluding retirees and customers with fixed voices. NOS maintained the information on the website with the application on February 1, even before the 2022 CPI value was known, which it updated in the meantime, and Vodafone was the last to report the increases, which only apply in March in the case of your customers. Out for now is NOWO, which is in the process of being acquired by Vodafone Portugal and which for now will not change prices.

With the current economic climate, price increases were expected, but in October ANACOM had asked operators to contain the annual update of prices, pointing out a list of recommendations for companies to assess and mitigate the impact of price revisions, and challenging -them to improve the respective offer conditions to Portuguese families.

In November 2022 prices had risen by 1.7% with the positive impact of Black Friday which led to a reduction of 0.5% compared to October, values ​​referred to for new package subscriptions.

Using Eurostat data, ANACOM indicates that the average change rates were 3.9% for bundled services and 0.2% for mobile telephones in the last 12 months. And in the case of package services, the rate grew by 2.8% compared to the same period in 2021.

Even so, compared to the European Union, Portugal is listed as the seventh country with the highest prices, in the average annual variation. Poland continues to be the country with the highest price variation, with 4.6% and on the other side of the spectrum, Slovenia saw an average drop of 4.4%.

7.8% more in tariffs: price update based on CPI portugal telecom prices 2023

Many communications contracts provide for the possibility of price updates based on the INE inflation rate, but ANACOM wants to make it clearer in the contracts which index value is used in price updates. It should be recalled that last year the application of a minimum rate of 50 cents generated some controversy, with the contestation of DECO Proteste, which defends that there should be no application of minimum values. portugal telecom prices 2023

DECO Proteste recalls that it has found, as a result of monitoring prices observed in recent years, “an excessive alignment of these same prices”. António Alves, a specialist in digital society at DECO PROTESTE, adds that taking into account the costs of early termination of telecommunications contracts, “ we have the perfect cocktail for consumers to remain with the same operator, even if they are dissatisfied, trying to negotiate their offer the best they can at the end of the contract “.

This specialist says that he recognizes that operators have made investments in 5G and recognizes that “they are not immune to this scenario of generalized inflation (eg increase in some raw materials and availability problems and increase in energy costs”. Even so, like ANACOM, refers that ” we cannot fail to ask the operators, and to a certain extent the regulator, to take into account the increasingly fragile economic situation in which countless families find themselves and to provide solutions for these, as we are talking about an essential public service”.

The calculations made show that, with the application of the IPC, there are tariffs that can increase by 12 euros per month, these being naturally the ones with the highest cost. António Alves also mentions that ” there are numerous mechanisms that can be considered, such as the possibility of certain families being able to opt for a downgrade of the contracted package (accompanied by a proportional price reduction), or even the waiver of some of the components of the package ( ex: landline)”.

Later this month, on January 13th, another of the measures defined in the Communications Law in relation to customer loyalty came into force, namely the formulas for calculating compensation for non-compliance. For António Alves, even with the changes, the law could have been more ambitious.

“An additional formula has been introduced to the current calculation of the costs of early termination of contracts that allows lowering these charges, especially in the case of packages with lower monthly fees”, he explains. Even so, ” the values ​​remain high – in the hundreds of euros – in the case of the most complete and most expensive packages, with three or four services (the most contracted), for those who want to give up the contract after 12 months”. portugal telecom prices 2023

“There are even situations in which there is no cost reduction compared to the previous law. This is what happens, for example, to most consumers who have a package with four services (4P) with an unlimited mobile data card”, he warns. the DECO PROTESTE specialist.