Mobile users grow 48% in 2005

According to the Belarusian Ministry of Communications and Information, the total number of mobile phone users in the country totalled 3.6 million at the end of September 2005, up 48% on the beginning of the year. Belcel covered 37.3% of the country’s territory and 81% of the population at that date, with 93,000 subscribers, while Velcom claimed 60% of the territory, 99% of the urban population and 1.65 million customers and MTS had 54.5% of the territory, 95.9% of the urban population and 1.68 million subscribers. The country’s fourth cellco, BeST, has yet to launch operations.