The MTS operator has installed cellular repeaters (femtocells) in the carriages of Moscow metro trains to provide voice communications, SMS services and mobile Internet using 3G technology. As reported by Interfax, this was reported by Igor Egorov, director of MTS in the capital region. As a transport network, MTS used the Wi-Fi network of the Internet company Maksimatelecom, the operator of a single Wi-Fi space on Moscow transport. Femtocells have been installed in almost 4,000 carriages on all metro lines, except for the Koltsevaya, Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya and Sokolnicheskaya lines, where MTS has already laid a slot cable to provide services.

The project uses femtocells from the Japanese corporation NEC. Each car has one femtocell. The parties do not disclose the commercial terms of the project.

Over the next one or two months, the partners will study the behavior of MTS subscribers and their needs for services, said Boris Volpe, CEO of Maximatelecom. The priority services under the agreement are voice services, SMS messages, and messenger traffic. Internet access speeds in the MTS network are not disclosed within the framework of the project.

MTS has started providing communication services in metro cars