MTS rolls out mobile telephony services in Jharkhand

Press Release
September 8, 2009

Ranchi, September 08 2009: MTS, the mobile telephony services brand of Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd (SSTL) was launched in Jharkhand today. MTS brand has over 100 million subscribers globally. In India, MTS already has a subscriber base of over 1.7 million and is present in 6 telecom circles including Bihar, Kolkata, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. MTS will continue to roll out its network in other circles to have an all-India footprint by Q3 of 2010. MTS India was recently recognized as the "Most Successful New Telecom Operator" by the Ministry of Telecommunications & IT.

Since its launch in Bihar in July this year, and having expanded to cover 28 of the 37 districts there, MTS has now launched in Jharkhand with up to 60% of the planned coverage in the state including 7 districts of Ranchi, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Lohardaga, West Singhbhum, East Singhbhum and Giridih, in Phase I. MTS will be available in Devghar & Sahibganj by mid-September, while all remaining districts will be covered by end of October. MTS Jharkhand subscribers will enjoy roaming facility in neighboring states of Bihar and West Bengal and all over India. MTS is currently available at 6500 retail outlets in Jharkhand, and will be available at 10, 000 retail outlets by end of this year.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. Sergey Savchenko, Chief Financial Officer, Sistema Shyam Teleservices Limited (SSTL) said, "Jharkhand and Bihar have together been the fastest growing mobile markets in India. Similarly, we at SSTL are the fastest Indian telecom operator to have reached the one million subscriber mark in the country. Customers in different telecom circles have chosen us for our superior voice clarity, uncongested networks, and honest & affordable pricing. We have been setting new standards in Indian telecom market. Our promise to the people of Jharkhand is to provide the best quality mobile services based on the most advanced technology, at the most competent prices. We recently became the first company in the world to have announced adoption of the latest 1X Advanced technology that provides outstandingly voice clarity and also high speed data services."

Mr. Sanjeev Garg, Chief Operating Officer - Bihar & Jharkhand, Sistema Shyam Teleservices Limited (SSTL) said, "Despite several challenges, Jharkhand is witnessing a phase of unprecedented growth. Jharkhand is likely to get a world-class IIM this year. More corporate investors coming to Jharkhand will also lead to more jobs and development. MTS hopes to be a partner in the growth of Jharkhand by making world-class communications more accessible, at prices to suit everyone's budgets. We have partnered with 100 distributors & sub distributors already and will double it up to 200 distributors and sub-distributors by 2009-end."

About Sistema Shyam TeleServices Limited
Sistema Shyam TeleServices (SSTL) is a joint venture company between Sistema {LSE: SSA} of Russia and Shyam Group of India. Sistema is the majority share holder in this joint venture with a 74% equity stake, along with the Shyam Group, holding a 23.5% stake and the rest 2.5% being public partake. SSTL has spectrum to provide mobile telephony services in all the 22 circles across the country. SSTL is also tied up with Mobile TeleSystems OJSC of Russia to bring the globally acclaimed telecom brand-MTS-to India. MTS is the 8th largest telecom brand in the world and has recently been voted as the 71st ranked brand out of 100 top global brands in the world by Millward Brown.

Press contacts:
MTS India Contacts:
Reet Gwari, Corporate Communications
Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd
Mobile: +91 9654191940
Email: pr@mtsindia.in

Puneet Khunger
Gutenberg Communications
Mb.: +91.9810191409
Email: puneet@gutenbergpr.com

Posted on: September 08, 2009 08:41 PM IST