Brazil has stepped further into the femtocell field. The board of directors of the Brazilian telecom regulatory agency, Anatel, has decided to subject the use of femtocell networks in personal and specialized mobile service to public consultation. The regulation of femtocells was expected. Over the past few months, both the minister of communications, Paulo Bernardo, and Anatel’s president, João Rezende, have recognized the importance of small cells for improving telecommunication services.
Femtocells are expected to play a big role in improving coverage and the quality of service. The proposed regulation provides reasonable freedom to use these small cells and does not consider them base stations—in this case, femtocells will not incur fees, such as contributions to Brazil’s telecomunication inspection fund also known as FISTEL. According to Anatel’s suggested definition, femtocells would be considered restricted radiation equipment.
“If we had regulated it otherwise, the cost of such equipment would be more than double compared to international prices,” Rezende told Convergência Digital, an RCR Wireless News syndicate partner.
For technical considerations, such as the use of licensed radio, femtocells will always be the property of the operators, who will be responsible for their configuration. The proposal points out that although femtocells are similar to Wi-Fi equipment, customers will not be able to buy their own antennas.
The use of femtocells, however, would require a specific contract between operators and customers, which might touch on the issue of number portability, meaning that when the user decides to switch operators, the femtocell must be disabled.
The proposal also notes that carriers can choose whether to charge for the installation and use of femtocell equipment. Counselor Jarbas Valente noted that the trend has been for carriers to provide both free of charge.
The proposal will be subject to public consultation for 45 days. Anatel will also hold a public hearing on the regulation in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil.
