com
TELE2 sets sights on Novosibirsk
TELE2
Budget operator TELE2 plans to exapnd its operations to the Novosibirsk area by Q3 2009, making it the third new region for the operator in 2009.
TELE2 has presence in 6 Federal districts, covering 19 regions and serving almost 11 million subscribers. Plans for 2009 include up to 10 new regions. Other areas where the operator has licences but no network will be covered in 2010, bringing network reach to 36 regions with a combined population of around 61 million.
This year TELE2 has already launched in the Tomsk district, and the Bryansk district is scheduled to go online this summer. The operator’s strategy for Novosibirsk follows that employed elsewhere in the country – super-cheap, full spectrum mobile services including EDGE.
Expansion of coverage will work outwards from the city of Novosibirsk, then into surrounding regional centres including Berdsk, Iskitim, Kuybyshev and Barabinsk before going on to ‘fill the gaps’. Tariff plans and the exact coverage areas are being kept under wraps until the official launch of the new network.
The company’s forecasts predict that the new operations will reach breakeven point within three years of launch, plus or minus, depending on regional specifics.
Source: TELE2