Questions Raised Over Telefónica's Position In Brazil

Spanish telecoms giant Telefónica could find that it has broken Brazil's telecoms regulatory policies and antitrust rules. The operator recently announced that it had gained a 23.6% stake in Telecom Italia, through a consortium including a number of Italian companies operating under newly formed company Telco. This provides Telefónica with a stake in TIM Brasil, which is 100%-owned by Telecom Italia. However, Telefónica is already present in the Brazilian market via Vivo, a joint venture it shares with Portugal Telecom. In addition to being present in the mobile sector through both these operators, Telefónica is also present in the fixed-line market, with Telecom Italia belonging to the controlling shareholders group of Brasil Telecom , the No3 fixed line operator, as well as holding a direct 87% majority stake in Telesp.

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