MegaCom Georgia
MegaCom Limited, the first cellular company in Georgia, was founded in 1993. Initially there were an American and several Georgian companies plus a private entity among its founders. Since 1995 MegaCom Limited is a 100% American-owned company. Megacom's only and major sphere of activities is cellular communications.
The License that was granted to MegaCom in 1993 made it a sole user of the 800 MHz frequency entire range. The company uses AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System) that is known under American standard throughout the world.
Since in 1993, when MegaCom was founded, the cellular market was completely free, MegaCom could have chosen any frequency and standard to use, including GSM. However, the choice was made in favor of AMPS .
In 1994 MegaCom activated the test cellular phone, while the commercial use of its network commenced in January 1995.
It is a well-known fact that MegaCom commenced its activities at the time of hardships and was faced with a number of handicaps within several years. Despite numerous problems, the company managed to overcome the difficulties and take over its segment in the cellular communications market.
Before 1998 MegaCom's coverage area included only Tbilisi area. The commencement of works on the coverage area extension before 1998 was hampered just by the artificial problems that were imposed on MegaCom.
The coverage area is still being expanded. By the beginning of 2001 MegaCom's coverage area has included Tbilisi, Mtskheta, Gardabani, Rustavi, Kojori, Dusheti, Gori, Tskhinvali, Khashuri, Zestaponi, Kutaisi, Senaki, Samtredia, Batumi, Kobuketi, Ureki and the surrounding areas of these cities. The expansion works are still under way and MegaCom's Technical Service is installing the cell sites in the areas that have not been covered by the signal so far and is adding the new sites to the areas where the signal is relatively weak in order to preserve the high quality of its service everywhere. By the end of 2001 MegaCom plans to cover 70-80% of populated areas of Georgia.
MegaCom was the first company to offer its subscribers Roaming Service in the CIS and in other countries worldwide. At the moment MegaCom's subscribers can use Roaming Service in 370 cities in the CIS and in up to 75 countries worldwide.
MegaCom has always offered its subscribers services on a deposit basis and in June 1999 introduced the easiest payment method - Megacard pre-pay plastic cards .
Using Megacard the subscribers can pay for their mobile number at any time and place. MegaCom was the first cellular company that commenced service with a similar payment method. The introduction of cards made the payment-related procedures easier for the subscribers.
MegaCard is available in 2 denominations - 25 GeL and 50 GeL. Once you have purchased the card scratch off the silver foil and enter the revealed number using your phone keypad. The system instantly applies the face value of the card to your number account. The replacement of the billing system that was used before summer 1999 by the new one allowed the subscribers to control their charges on an individual basis and learn about the balance on their account by the moment they need it without calling Information Service.
Deposit payment method, new billing system and a number of other innovations allowed MegaCom to keep the subscribers' confidentiality (that is, to exclude the need for drawing up an agreement or official documents related to the purchase of the phone), to raise the service level, to automate the payment recording, etc.
In June 1999 MegaCom introduced another complementary service - Voice Mail that allowed MegaCom's subscribers to receive messages even when they are talking on the phone, when the phone is off or when they are beyond the coverage area.
Before June 1999 an enormous dealer network was set up. In fact it covered all big cities of Georgia. One can purchase Megacard plastic cards, as well as various phone models and accessories, with the dealers. To date, MegaCom's dealer network incorporates about 300 stores. In Tbilisi, for example, the location of the stores was chosen based on the principle that allowed the subscribers to purchase the plastic card within a 10-minute walking distance. In the future MegaCom plans to increase the number of dealers in proportion that will reduce the 10-minute period to the 3-minute one.
In October 1999 MegaCom was the only cellular company to offer its subscribers a choice, that is, either to have an existing 6-digit number or to choose a 9-digit one. The adoption of this decision was conditioned by two main reasons: 1) in the course of reviewing the market MegaCom felt the potential customers' need for the code numbers and took it into account and 2) MegaCom's subscribers could make a choice between the 6-digit or 9-digit numbers depending on their wish, need and means. In October 1999 MegaCom was allotted the "8-97" Intra-Republic free access code and the initial 2-digit index ("57", "58") for 6-digit numbers.
What Do the Two Systems Have in Common?
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easy-to-use service - no additional codes
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easy payment method - Megacard
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possibility to control the charges
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5 second billing increments after the first minute of talk
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free information on the subscribers' account balance at any time and place
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24 hour Customer Service *611
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variety of free services
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roaming in many countries worldwide
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confidentiality - no contracts
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strong dealer network to purchase the phones and accessories in (up to 300 stores throughout Georgia)
In the future MegaCom plans to offer its subscribers a lot of innovations. You can learn about them via Internet or by dialing at MegaCom's contact numbers.
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