JSC Central Telegraph announced the linking up of the first telephone numbers with the area code 498. The residents of the town of Korolyov, Moscow region, were the first to get the numbers with the new code. Those numbers, as well as Moscow direct telephone numbers, have seven digits, but their area code is 498, not 095. The new code will be used in the near-Moscow towns.

The first telephone subscribers are switched to the telephone station with the first digits 498-600 and 498-601 in the near-Moscow region and 498-602 in the far-Moscow region. The company provides its services in the basis of its own Centel digital transport network.

To make a call from the telephone with the code 498 one needs to dial 8, than three-digit area code and a subscriber's number. Thanks to the digital quality of the company's services 8 is always free. To reach the number with the same code 498 one dials 8-498 and a subscriber's number, when calling Moscow telephone number - 8-095 and a subscriber's number. The same way one can call the numbers with the code 498 from the telephone numbers with other codes: 8-498 and a subscriber's number.

According to the new law "Concerning telecommunications" Central Telegraph has developed several tariff plans, so every customer has an opportunity to choose the most cost-effective tariff.

Installation of the number in all cases costs 9 000 rubles. Incoming calls for subscribers of all tariff plans are free of charge. Calls from the number with the code 498 to the numbers with the codes 498 and 095 (Moscow numbers) are considered as local.

Monthly fee according to the tariff plan Centel 498-1 is 100 rubles, it includes 300 minutes of outgoing calls. Other local outgoing calls cost 0,25 rubles per minute.

According to the second tariff plan Centel 498-2 monthly fee is 250 rubles. This plan allows the subscribers to make local calls without limits.

According to the third tariff plan Centel 498-3 subscriber's fee is 50 rubles a month. One minute of the call costs 0,25 rubles.

"Before the introduction of the new code we provided our customers only with the telephone numbers with the code 095, - says the General Director of Central Telegraph Vaagn Martirosyan. - But the installation was rather expensive. Now we can reduce the installation fee two times and a half. This will help our company to satisfy the requirements of the Moscow region residents for the reasonably priced digital telephone services".

Clients of Central Telegraph in the Moscow region can use not only the telephone, but also Internet services of the company.

Central Telegraph works already for a long time in the Moscow region, providing its residents with the full range of the modern telecommunication services on the base of its Centel fiber-optic transport network.

In the Moscow region the services are provided by local service provision centers.

While linking up the numbers with the area code 498 Central Telegraph cooperated closely with JSC CenterTelecom, JSC MGTS and JSC Rostelecom. According to the resolution of RF Ministry of Telecommunication, these four companies are responsible for the reconstruction of Moscow regional telephone network.

*****

JSC Central Telegraph is one of the largest telecommunication companies offering the full range of communication services to individual and corporate customers in the Moscow region. Today the company provides all types of modern telecommunication services: access to the Internet via dedicated and switched channels (Central Telegraph is "The Best Internet Provider 2002"), data transfer, local, national and international telephone services, connection of ATMs and POS terminals to X.25 network, installation of telephone numbers in Moscow and in the Moscow region on the basis of its own fiber-optic network Centel. Quality management system of the company corresponds to the requirements of ISO 9001:2000 standard applied to telecommunication services. Information about the company you can find at its Internet site www.cnt.ru

Additional information:

JSC Central Telegraph
PR and Advertising Department
Tel.: +7 (095) 504-38-62
Fax: +7 (095) 745-33-96
E-mail: pr@cnt.ru