Russian mobile market leader MTS has belatedly entered the 5G cooperation joint venture (JV) formed by its rivals MegaFon, Rostelecom (including Tele2 Russia) and Vimpelcom (Beeline). As reported by Interfax, MTS has acquired a 25% equity stake in New Digital Solutions, with the other three participants also holding 25% apiece.

New Digital Solutions was initially established in 2018 as a 5G JV between MegaFon and Rostelecom, but plans were subsequently altered and a new JV agreement between these two and Beeline was signed in mid-2021. The JV aims to test 5G for electromagnetic compatibility, conduct research on frequencies for building 5G networks, and implement measures to free up spectrum from existing applications, including but not limited to the bands 694MHz-790MHz, 3.4GHz-3.8GHz, 4.4GHz-4.99GHz and 24.25GHz-29.5GHz. In November 2021 the State Commission for Radio Frequencies (SCRF) allocated New Digital Solutions bands in the 4400MHz-4990MHz range for testing 5G technology for two years.