The networks of all four cellular operators operating in Moscow will cover the stations and hauls of the Big Circle Line (BKL), which is expected to open this week. This was reported to Izvestia by representatives of the companies.
The construction of the network on the BCL cost the operators several billion rubles, sources told Izvestia in two cellular companies. Investments approached 5 billion rubles, one of them specified. According to him, the resources spent on covering the Big Ring would be enough to organize Internet access in a small region of the Russian Federation.
The cost of the project could correspond to the named budget, two experts in the field of construction and operation of communication networks confirmed. Operators’ representatives do not comment on the project budget.
“From the opening day of the new BCL section, passengers will be able to use the 4G mobile network from all Big Four operators,” the Moscow Department of Transport said on its Telegram channel.
Whatever the investment in BKL telephony, it is unlikely that they will pay off, Izvestia’s source in one of the cellular operators and interviewed experts noted. Large-scale costs and the use of network equipment, the supply of which was stopped by the world’s leading vendors, are necessary to maintain subscriber loyalty. Passengers unable to use the internet on the 71-kilometer line are likely to switch carriers to one that can provide the service, they explain.
The cost of building a network on the BCL can be compared with the budget for installing telephones in a small region of Russia, Sergey Polovnikov, head of the Content-Review project, agrees. By itself, this construction will not pay off – the operators pursue, first of all, image goals, he notes. The presence of communication in the Moscow metro has become the norm, its absence from a particular company is extremely negative from the point of view of its subscribers, the expert concluded.
Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:
Communication line: installation of telephones on the Big Ring cost almost 5 billion rubles
