Whereas, in the determination of 30 October 2014, the Management Board of ICP-ANACOM informed Vodafone that it had found that, on 22 October 2014, the company had unilaterally imposed a measure on all its prepaid tariff customers requiring them to constitute and credit a second balance to be able to place calls to numbers within the "760" range of the PNN - Plano Nacional de Numeração (National Numbering Plan) while failing to fulfil the provisions of paragraph 6 of article 48 of the LCE:
- as regards the period of prior written notice of the contractual change effected, which communication should have been sent to prepaid tariff customers one month in advance,
- as regards the information that this communication should provide, both because the communication is incomplete in terms of information about the imposed contract amendment, and in terms of the communication failing to refer to the right of subscribers to withdraw from the contract within the period prescribed therein without penalty in the event that they do not accept the new condition;
Whereas, as already mentioned in the Determination of 30 October 2014, the measure unilaterally imposed by Vodafone, in the described circumstances, results in consequences that materially accentuate the negative impact for users and competition had by measures of this type, as demonstrated by the 70 complaints received by ICP-ANACOM as of 28 October 2014, by the comments posted on the Vodafone Forum1 and directed to television providers and attached to the application for urgent intervention submitted and formulated by AR Telecom - Acessos e Redes de Telecomunicações, S.A., by RTP - Rádio e Televisão de Portugal, S.A., by SIC - Sociedade Independente de Comunicação, S.A. and by TVI - Televisão Independente, S.A.;
Whereas, pursuant to the Determination of 30 October 2014, ICP-ANACOM ordered Vodafone, to suspend, with immediate effect, restrictions on access to the "760" numbering range imposed on subscribers with prepaid tariffs, as entailing the need to constitute and credit a second balance, and to include and highlight information about the suspension of this measure on the company's website and inform affected subscribers to the effect, and further (albeit by means of another source of information) inform affected subscribers as to how any second balance credited in the meantime may be used;
Whereas, subsequent to an analysis of the positions advanced by Vodafone, the reasoning giving basis to imposition of the suspension, on an interim basis, is confirmed
The Management Board of ICP-ANACOM determines, in accordance with paragraph 3 of article 111 of the LCE, to confirm its suspension of the restriction imposed by VODAFONE PORTUGAL - Comunicações Pessoais, S.A., as regards access to the "760" numbering range by respective subscribers with prepaid tariffs, as entailing the need to constitute and credit a second balance, and that it include and highlight information about the suspension of this measure on its website and inform affected subscribers to the effect, and further (albeit by means of another source of information) inform affected subscribers as to how any second balance credited in the meantime may be used.
1 http://forum.vodafone.pt/
