As Finland’s Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson, which have provided major telecommunications equipment and related services to Russia, completely withdrew from the market at the end of this year, Russians will suffer from mobile phone use problems, Reuters reported on the 21st (local time).
Quoting industry sources, the news agency said that the withdrawal of Nokia and Ericsson fro Russia will cause mobile phone users to experience slow data downloads, uploads, and disconnections as Russian mobile carriers lose their ability to upgrade or patch software and have difficulty securing spare parts.
Nokia and Ericsson, which have taken up a large share in the local communication equipment market while responsible for 50% of Russian base station equipment, make various communication equipment from communication antennas to hardware that connects optical fibers. It also provides software that is essential for network operation.
However, the two companies joined the sanctions against Russia regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and will completely withdraw from the Russian market by the end of this year.
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Carl Melander told Reuters on the same day that the deadline for exemption from sanctions against Russia will end at the end of the year.
Swedish authorities have excluded Ericsson from the list of sanctions against Russia.
Nokia CEO Pekar Lundmark also said on the same day, “Our withdrawal from the Russian market will be completed. We will not supply anything to Russia.
In a related development, Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development and Communication claimed to TASS that “there is no shortage of communication equipment, and the withdrawal of Nokia and Ericsson will not affect communication quality.”
Communications Minister Maxut Shadayev said earlier this week, “Four Russian telecommunications companies have signed a contract to invest more than 100 billion rubles in the production of Russian equipment,” stressing, “This will enable Russia to produce modern telecommunications equipment on its own.”
In response, four major Russian news agencies, MTS, Megaphone, B-Line, and Tele2, refused or did not respond to requests for comment.
Russian telecommunications companies have been reducing their dependence on Nokia and Ericsson over the past few years with government support, and Russian telecommunications companies’ market share has also increased from 11.6% in 2021 to 25.2% this year.
Industry sources point out, however, that a break in relations with foreign companies will delay Russian communications by a generation.
Leonit Konig, who runs IT media Comnews in Moscow, expressed concern, “If this situation persists for many years, the network of Russian mobile carriers could return to the state of the late 1990s, when it was limited to large cities and suburban areas where the wealthy live.”
