In the Crimea, the Russian communications operator Miranda Media warned about a possible increase in prices for the Internet after the disconnection of Internet traffic between the occupied peninsula and Ukraine.
This is with reference to Kommersant reports BusinessCenter.
A number of Internet providers in Sevastopol since September will increase tariffs by about 10%.
Sevastopol Internet provider "Sevstar" reported on "forced" increase in tariffs for home Internet "due to a significant increase in the cost of Internet traffic from a higher-level provider". According to the message on his website, depending on the package of services, tariffs are increased by 7-10% from September 1, for access via wi-fi - by 25%.
As explained by the general director of the Sevstar ISPS LLC, Constantine Kokush, who is a member of the Sevstar group, in July the company received a notice from the main communications operator Miranda Media about a significant increase in prices for IP traffic since August 19.
Earlier, Sevastar purchased traffic from Miranda Media and the international operator RETN in equal shares, but after Ukraine disconnected the fiber optic communication line (FOCL) to the Crimea in late July, Miranda Media became virtually monopolistic Supplier "of such services, states Mr. Kokush.
The notification from Miranda Media about the price increase for IP traffic was received by the general director of the mobile operator KTK Telecom (since the summer of 2016 it has been providing services in the Crimea under the brand Volna Mobile) Dmitry Klimenko.
According to the representative of Miranda Media Victoria Saulova, the company notified the operators about a possible increase in tariffs, but so far they have not raised them. According to her, the higher prices of these services from "Miranda Media" are "economically justified".
"The cost of traffic in Ukraine and Russia is about the same, and the transport component is higher, because the distance from Simferopol to Moscow is many times greater than from Simferopol to Kiev.
Moreover, in order to provide Crimea with a reserve volume of traffic, we purchase a double amount of traffic in case of force majeure. In this case, we can provide the whole Crimea with Internet through one of the two channels we have, "she explained..
In "Rostelecom" they said that they do not manage Miranda-Media, since the operator's share in this company is less than 20%. "Rostelecom" controlled "Miranda Media" until September 2015, after which it reduced its share. According to lawyers, this could reduce the risk that the Russian state-owned company will enter the sanctions lists.