As a first mobile operator in Montenegro, Telenor marks a significant jubilee of its business this year, but also of development of mobile technology that it has introduced in Montenegro.
“I believe that we have used this time to improve the business environment, development of the local economy, and we have made Montenegrin market attractive for foreign investors”, Štajner said in an interview to Mina Business Agency.
She said that one of the bigger investments was the Technical building, worth 4 million EUR, equipped with the most contemporary technology for development and sustainability of the network.
“It is the only facility built exclusively for the telecommunications and IT equipment in Montenegro, in accordance with the recommendations and worldwide standards for these type of facilities”, she said.
A few days ago, Telenor added telehousing to its list of services, which means that they will have an offer for the companies, to use especially made rooms in their Technical building, to place and protect their IT equipment.
“Telehousing services are adjusted to the needs of big companies, financial institutions and internet providers, as well as to everyone else who takes their IT system security seriously”, Štajner explained.
Currently Telenor is covering 97% of users in Montenegro with 3G internet.
“We continue with the intense spreading of 4G signal, that should cover 70% of the users, which will bring faster data uploading and downloading, as well as video streaming for users in Montenegro”, she said.
Speaking of the network quality, she said that the main foundation of their business in the era of internet and digital services is the network, which is why its standards of quality and coverage are the priority.
“We do not accept compromises on that line, I think this is what users know us for. We want to provide them a quality network, wherever they are, whether they use their phone for conversations and SMS, or more advanced digital services“, Štajner explained.
According to the analysis Prema of leading world tech companies, in the next 4 years, one half of the world population will use mobile internet, and the number of devices will rise to 50 billion.
“In Montenegro, more than 300 thousand people use mobile internet today. With the rise of users, their needs rise as well”, she said.
Telenor provided 4G services in Montenegro back in 2012, a lot earlier than in other countries in the region. Citizens of Podgorica, Nikšić, Bar and Cetinje were the first to use high speed internet.
“We gradually spread 4G network to the other cities, and we continue to work on spreading the coverage. In March, we made 4G available for prepaid users as well, so we could make the new technology available for everyone“, Štajner said.
During the summer season, Telenor will spread its network capacities, and the coastal area is the priority.
“We are aware of the importance of tourism in Montenegro, and in Telenor we want the tourists to remember the good network coverage, uninterrupted services and fast internet. We consider this our support to the promotion and recognition of Montenegro on the international scene“, Štajner said.
During this summer, they will activate 11 temporary locations, that will serve to improve coverage and fast internet during the overloads on the network.
“We always prepare special offers for tourists, and this summer they can expect 4G cards with unlimited internet“, Štajner added.
She said that the users are becoming more open to digitalization and they are relying on modern technologies in their private and business life.
“We are the first operators that introduced digital services to this market, and the number of users has been constantly growing. We started with Deezer, digital service for music streaming, Capture for saving photographs, and these are used by more than 6 000 people in Montenegro”, she said.
The users can also freely use one of the biggest base of information in the world – Wikipedia.
“Telenor is developing digital services in cooperation with global companies such as Facebook, Google and Microsoft. Users can expect a quality offer of services that will be relevant for them and make their everyday life easier“, Štajner said.
Also, users can expect a wider variety in offer. Since last year, MNNews has been a part of Telenor, and its revenue has risen 14% since.
“Together we are working to improve the system that guarantees the high quality and reliability of the network. We strengthened the capacities of the optical network, and currently we have 30 of our most important 4G base stations connected to the optical network, making full use of the technology. We will continue to improve the platform for offering additional services to business users”, said Štajner.
They will also continue introducing the most modern devices, that they bring to Montenegro immediately after their world premiers.
She said that after two decades of business in Montenegro they can see the advantages and space for improvement.
“Transparency and predictability of the regulatory and legal framework remain the biggest challenges for us. One of the main conditions for the development of electronic communications is adjustment of regulatory framework with the directions from EU, especially when it comes to cloud solutions, that enable saving data online“, Štajner said.
Existing regulatory framework is an obstacle for operators to apply such solutions, which makes it hard for investors to get interested in Montenegro.
“Stable regulatory framework is key for Montenegro’s responsibility, and one of the basic elements for investors to consider Montenegro, including Telenor. This is why we actively work to respect law regulations and we support regulatory framework brought by EU integration”, she said.
It is important for Telenor to do business in an environment that is stable and works in the best interest of users and the community.
Speaking of the activities of Telenor Foundation she said that in 20 years they have been recognized as a company that invests in local community.
“The most recognized of our initiatives is SurfujPametno, that has been in works for 5 years already in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Ministry for Information Society and Telecommunications. We have managed to educate more than 14 thousand elementary school students on the benefits of using internet safely. By the end of this school year, this number will rise to 20 thousand”, she said.
She reminded that they have three open calls behind them, and they have support several important projects for the community. In cooperation with partners they have used modern technology to raise attention to the issue of environment protection, mapping of objects approachable with persons with disability, they have thoughts students to develop applications and supported young artists.
“We are currently choosing new projects. Through one of them we will continue to support inclusion of societal minorities, which is our main goal”, Štajner concluded.
