OREANDA-NEWS. December 24, 2010. Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (“MTS” – NYSE: MBT), the leading telecommunications provider in Russia and the CIS, announces that the MTS Group through Comstar-Regions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Comstar-UTS, has acquired 100% in Novosibirsk Multiservice Company LLC (“NMC”), a leading alternative operator in the Novosibirsk region, from a group of private investors for RUB 725 million (USD 23.6 million1 ) including debt considerations.

The NMC group of companies provides cable TV, broadband Internet and fixed-line services in the Novosibirsk region under the CityHomeNet brand. The company is the leading cable TV operator in the region and is one of the top broadband providers. NMC’s network coverage is around 247,000 households that are all FTTB-based. The company currently has approximately 71,000 cable TV and 41,000 broadband Internet subscribers as well as 500 fixed-line corporate clients.

Aleksander Popovskiy, Head of Business Unit MTS Russia, highlighted, “The acquisition is in line with the Company’s strategy of rapidly expanding broadband and pay-TV services throughout Russia. The acquisition presents MTS with a great opportunity to enhance its position in an attractive market like Novosibirsk, the third-largest city in Russia, by complementing our 3G mobile services with fixed-line broadband and pay-tv services with the goal of providing the very best customer experience.”

At the time of acquisition, NMC’s net debt stood at RUB 7.54 million (USD 0.25 million). NMC’s financial results will be consolidated in MTS’ financial statements beginning from December 20, 2010.