Moscow, Russian Federation – Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (“M” – NYSE: MBT), the leading telecommunications provider in Russia and the CIS, announces that it has been awarded the first license in Russia to provide wireless communication services in the LTE standard in Moscow and the Moscow region.

The Federal Service for Supervision in the Sphere of Telecom, Information Technologies and Mass Communications (Roskomnadzor) has granted MTS a license to provide wireless telecommunications services in the LTE TDD (time-division duplexing) standard in the 2595–2620 MHz range. MTS is required to launch the LTE network before December 29, 2013. The license is valid till December 29, 2016.

Andrei Ushatskiy, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of MTS, commented, “The LTE license is an important step forward in the advancement of next generation networks in Russia. In late 2011, MTS completed its network modernization in Moscow, which enables us to quickly roll-out our LTE network in the region. Shortly after receiving all the necessary regulatory approvals, MTS will be able to offer its subscribers a full array of wireless telecommunications services through the seamless integration of our GSM, 3G and LTE networks.”