MTS and Disney Sign Deal to Deliver Digital Content to Russia
MOSCOW, RUSSIAN FEDERATION, April 7, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Mobile TeleSystems OJSC ("MTS" -NYSE: MBT), the leading telecommunications provider in Russia and the CIS, and The Walt Disney Company CIS ("Disney") signed a deal to deliver Disney's movies and television shows via the Internet in Russia. MTS will deliver Disney's content to the Russian market through it proprietary content portal Omlet.ru, allowing Russian consumers to access legal content from one of the Hollywood's major studios.
As of today, Omlet.ru users can access around 100 Disney's movies, including such hits as "Surrogates", "National Treasure", "The Proposal", "G-Force", "Pirates of the Caribbean", the animated film "Up", "Lost" television series and more. Under the terms of the agreement, the Disney catalogue on Omlet.ru will be regularly updated, and new DVD releases will be simultaneously available for download or streaming on the MTS content portal. During 2010, MTS expects to deliver some of the most anticipated Disney releases to Omlet.ru, including "Alice in Wonderland", "Toy Story 3" and "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time".
Omlet.ru users can either download or steam new releases from Disney, with the price for download ranging from 100 to 150 rubles and for streaming from 60 to 75 rubles. Older hits from the Disney catalogue will cost 75 rubles to download and 40 rubles to stream. Omlet.ru content is available on PCs/laptops and mobile devices, allowing to download or stream movies both at home and on-the-go.
"The development of innovative technologies and the growing popularity of the Internet contribute to the increasing demand and consumption of digital content. To that end, MTS is focused both on the development of the necessary mobile and fixed infrastructure and on the delivery of the wide selection of top-rate content to the market," noted Mikhail Gerchuk, Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of MTS. "Omlet.ru portal is the primary destination in Russia allowing all Internet users to enjoy legal content from the leading studios. "
<<Disney aims to provide Russian Internet users with the most comfortable access to its movies," noted Marina Zhigalov-Ozkan, head of the Russian office of Disney. "We are very interested in the development of digital distribution of legal Disney content in Russia."
Omlet.ru content portal was launched by MTS in the fall of 2009, offering a large selection of licensed movies, music and games for mobile and computer users. There are about 550 movies and TV series available on Omlet.ru today, and the catalogue is constantly updated with new releases and classic hits.
Mobile TeleSystems OJSC ("MTS") is the leading telecommunications group in Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, offering mobile and fixed voice, broadband, pay TV as well as content and entertainment services in one of the world's fastest growing regions. Including its subsidiaries, the Group services over 102.3 million mobile subscribers in Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia and Belarus, a region that boasts a total population of more than 230 million. Since June 2000, MTS' Level 3 ADRs have been listed on the New York Stock Exchange (ticker symbol MBT). Additional information about the MTS Group can be found at http://www.mtsgsm.com.
Some of the information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of MTS, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify forward looking statements by terms such as "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "will," "could," "may" or "might," and the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. We wish to caution you that these statements are only predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We do not undertake or intend to update these statements to reflect events and circumstances occurring after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. We refer you to the documents MTS files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically the Company's most recent Form 20-F. These documents contain and identify important factors, including those contained in the section captioned "Risk Factors" that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections or forward-looking statements, including, among others, the severity and duration of current economic and financial conditions, including volatility in interest and exchange rates, commodity and equity prices and the value of financial assets; the impact of Russian, U.S. and other foreign government programs to restore liquidity and stimulate national and global economies, our ability to maintain our current credit rating and the impact on our funding costs and competitive position if we do not do so, strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions and our success in integrating acquired businesses, including Comstar-UTS, potential fluctuations in quarterly results, our competitive environment, dependence on new service development and tariff structures, rapid technological and market change, acquisition strategy, risks associated with telecommunications infrastructure, governmental regulation of the telecommunications industries and other risks associated with operating in Russia and the CIS, volatility of stock price, financial risk management and future growth subject to risks.
For further information, please contact in Moscow:
Joshua B. Tulgan
Director, Investor Relations
Mob: +7-985-220-4208
Department of Investor Relations
Mobile TeleSystems OJSC
Tel: +7-495-223-2025
E-mail: [email protected]
Learn more about MTS. Visit the official blog of the Investor Relations Department at http://www.mtsgsm.com/blog/
SOURCE MTS Mobile TeleSystems
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