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Weekly Lists
August 3, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 24
bne:TMT Russian mobile major
MTS sues Turkmen authorities for $750mn
Russian mobile telecom major MTS is suing the Turkmen authori- ties for $750mn at the World Bank's ICSID (International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes), the company said on July 27.
MTS had to suspend its operations in Turkmenistan in 2017 after the Turkmen authorities cut off its access to the intercity and in- ternational communications network. As of the end of the second quarter of 2017, MTS had 1.7mn subscribers in Turkmenistan.
The company considered "that the Turkmen State has violated its rights as a foreign investor under the Agreement on Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments (the 'Treaty') signed between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Turkmenistan on March 29, 2009, ultimately resulting in the total expropriation of the Company’s investment in Turkmenistan."
Iran's Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) has permitted Ertebatate Sayar Houshmande Amin (AMIN S.M.C) to begin offering a new mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that is directed at young children and teenagers, ICTNA reported on July 30.
More than a dozen MVNOs that rent bandwidth from main providers are currently in existence in Iran, but the market segment has low profitability.
The new MVNO brand called Teen Taak was launched on the sidelines of the Elecomp digital industries exhibition in northern Tehran.
Hamid Reza Amirinia, chairman of the board of directors of Amin S.M.C., said that with the emphasis placed by the company on the safety of children and young people in the digital domain, “we believe that Iranian children and teens can participate in
a healthy digital environment”.
Start-up companies in Estonia attracted investment to the tune of €245.6mn in the first half of the year, only €26.5mn below the figure achieved in entire 2017, Startup Estonia, a government agency estab- lished to strengthen the country’s start-up scene, said on August 1.
Up to €350mn in investment money is expected by the end of
the year, Startup Estonia said. “The fact that the investments are flowing into so many very different companies shows that Estonian tech ecosystem is well-established and not relying on a few success stories only,” Allan Martinson, a start-up entrepreneur and investor, said in a statement.
Iranian telecom MVNO launched for kids
Estonian start-ups attract nearly €250mn in investment money inH1