Brazilian regulator Anatel has announced that the new version of its Anatel Mobile Service app allows users to share their experiences using mobile services. The app is available for Android and iOS devices and will soon launch on Windows. The accounts of the experiences shared by users—such as loss of signal, slow or unstable connection, dropping of a connection, bad connection or lack of signal—are available in a geo-referenced map covering the past 30 days.

Tarifica’s Take

Accountability on the part of mobile operators is a major issue in consumer relations, and Anatel has taken a strong position. By making it easier for Brazilian mobile users to keeps each other informed about quality of service and to compare and contrast it across operators, it will likely encourage churn and put pressure on operators to improve their networks in order to remain competitive. While the app has no regulatory “teeth,” we believe that it represents a challenge to operators.