OREANDA-NEWS. On 03 June 2009 was announced, that Moscow hosted the Svyaz-Expocomm-2009 international exhibition on telecommunications equipment, management systems, information technologies and telecom services. One of the central exhibits that attracted the attention of telecom professional and guests was Svyazinvest’s unified display booth, representing seven regional telecom operators of the holding, DLD/ILD provider Rostelecom, Central Telegraph and Giprosvyaz, Russia’s leading design institute for telecommunications systems.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev attended Svyazinvest’s exhibition stand on the first day of the exhibition. The holding’s general director Evgeny Yurchenko told Dmitry Medvedev about the holding’s main areas of expansion and operations for the group. The President devoted keen attention to telecom services rendered to the public and set the target for Svyazinvest to make Internet access services more affordable for Russian citizens.

During the first day of the exhibition, Svyazinvest’s displays were examined by vice PM and head of the Government Office Sergey Sobyanin, Telecom Minister Igor Shchegolev and president of the Chamber of Industry and Trade Evgeny Primakov.

Deputy chairman of the Russian Council of Ministers Sergey Sobyanin spent more time at the event than expected. He took an interest in the portal of state services, showed in test mode, information about which was provided by Svyazinvest’s general director Evgeny Yurchenko.  “The portal should be up and running by the end of the year,” deputy chairman of the Council of Ministers noted.

On the whole, Svyazinvest’s RTOs and Rostelecom showed new areas for their activities in Russian territory, achievements and opportunities in providing both traditional and hi-tech telecommunications services such as broadband Internet, mobile communication, digital interactive television and intellectual network services. The holding’s businesses were awarded diplomas by the Russian Telecom Ministry for the participation in a special exhibit organized by the ministry at the Svyaz-Expocomm-2009 exhibition.

All in all, over 340 exhibitors from 34 countries showcased global development trends in telecom and mass communication sectors. Svyaz-Expocomm turned into an operating platform for the elaboration of an absolutely new formula of interaction among telecom companies, IT and media professionals, equipment developers and manufacturers.

Along with the exhibition at the Expocenter located at Krasnaya Presnya an enlarged meeting was held on by the collegial board of the Russian Telecom Ministry to review results achieved in 2008 and set targets for 2009.

One of the primary issues considered at the Board’s enlarged meeting was how to strengthen the state’s role in the telecom industry and restructure Svyazinvest, a backbone holding in the Russian economy. In his speech, Vice Prime Minister Sergey Ivanov noted in particular that it’s essential to carry out a thorough reorganization at the major telecom holding. The present environment has set new targets for the group that are of national importance and their scope exceeded its current opportunities long ago. Amid economic instability it is evident that this is important that the state, as Svyazinvest’s major shareholder, should cement its positions in the telecom industry.

Addressing the Board, Telecom Minister Igor Shchegolev said with regard to Svyazinvest that “the 150th year birthday of radio inventor Alexander Popov who staged a revolution in the world of science and opened a new era of technologies will be marked for Russian telecom professionals by the large-scale and long-awaited and much needed reorganization of key telecom holding Svyazinvest. In times of economic turmoil, systemic defects become extremely visible and changes that should occur become quite evident. Needless to say, this will be the most significant event of the year for the industry and not only fixed-line operators will see its positive effect”. “The final touches are now being put on Svyazinvest’s development strategy,” the minister continued, adding that primary goals for Svyazinvest Group during the transition period had already been clearly defined. “A new management team is needed for the attainment of these targets (improve the operating efficiency of structures and units, retain market positions and overcome the crisis as painlessly as possible,” he said.

“I would like to emphasize that the state, as the majority shareholder of Svyazinvest, has tasked the company’s management with bolstering the state’s positions in the telecom industry. In view of the sector’s post-crisis development it becomes evident that Svyazinvest is destined to become a unified national operator and a global player on the telecommunications market,” he noted.

Svyazinvest’s general director Evgeny Yurchenko said now is the right time to establish such an operator. According to him, the need to strengthen the state’s role in the telecom industry is evident and a national telecom operator could be set up on the basis of Svyazinvest, the biggest state-controlled telecommunications asset. “The telecommunications sector plays a special role in the structure of any modern economic development model,” Yurchenko said, adding that it forms a link without which the exchange of information between state authorities, businesses and people is not possible. It is evident to all parties that it’s important to maintain control over the telecom sector, as a result of which the state is interested in raising the stakes of its assets in the industry and also in pushing up the market value of these assets. To solve such an ambitious task a hub is needed on which the state could expand its presence, and Svyazinvest could be this hub.