SIMFEROPOL - Russia's LLC K-Telecom started up its cellular network in Crimea on Aug. 4, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said during a video conference with Communications and Media Minister Nikolai Nikiforov and deputy prime ministers.
“Today the network of Russian operator K-Telecom was launched on the peninsula,” Medvedev said.
For now several base stations have been opened in K-Telecom’s network in Simferopol. The operator’s network is accessible together with MTS-Ukraine’s network. In 48 hours the network of MTS-Ukraine will be switched off across Crimea. In its place, K-Telecom’s network will begin to operate, a source in the Crimean government told journalists.
“Now MTS-Ukraine offers subscribers in Crimea a full range of communications services and the operator will continue to render communications services on the peninsula as long as it is technically possible,” Dmitry Solodovnikov, an MTS representative, told Interfax.
Crimean Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Polonsky, who also holds the post of Information and Communications Minister said that besides MTS-Ukraine, other operators, including Kyivstar and Astelit, will have their networks in Crimea shut down on August 5. Representatives of the Ukrainian operators are denying this.
K-Telecom’s network includes two switching centers and about 1,000 base stations, Nikiforov said.
For now only the GSM network has been launched, but in the fall, K-Telecom could start up 3G and LTE, Medvedev said. Nikiforov said for now there are no frequency decisions regarding this technology.
K-Telecom will work in Crimea under the brand name of Win Mobile.
The operator has received a Crimean number allocation – 1 million numbers with the code “978”.
The State Committee of Radio Frequencies gave K-Telecom GSM frequencies, on which the network of MTS-Ukraine works. MTS-Ukraine is the subsidiary of Russia’s MTS. The latter denies its affiliation with K-Telecom.
K-Telecom shareholders are not being disclosed, but sources in the telecommunications market are saying these are private investors.
Besides K-Telecom, OJSC Vimpelcom also received number capacity in Crimea, 500,000 numbers with the “978” code. Sources said that the State Committee of Radio Frequencies gave the company frequencies on which Ukraine’s Kyivstar works. Kyivstar also belongs to Vimpelcom Ltd.
A source in telecommunications circles told Interfax that Russian Vimpelcom will launch a network in Crimea in six months in place of Kyivstar. The company will work in Crimea, but not under the brand name of Beeline, the source said.
Vimpelcom is not commenting on plans for work in Crimea, company representative Anna Aibasheva told Interfax.
Nikiforov expects that technical roaming will work in Crimea. Operators will open their networks for the subscribers of each other, as it was done during the Sochi Olympic Games.
