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"MOSCOW, Nov 10 (Prime-Tass) -- The number of mobile telecommunication subscribers in Uzbekistan may more than triple by 2010 reaching 3.5 million users, compared with the current 1 million users, Abdula Aripov, the general director of the Communications and Information Agency of Uzbekistan, told journalists Thursday. The subscriber base is expected to double on the year to 1.1 million user by the end of this year 'if the growth rate persists', Aripov said. The user base rose 68.7% since January 1 to 917,800 users as of September 30, he said. Competition in mobile services is the driving force for user base growth, as companies introduce technologies and lower prices to lure customers, he said. The average mobile penetration rate in Uzbekistan amounts to 4%, while in the country's capital Tashkent the penetration rate is around 20%. In the country's regions this figure stands at 2%, Aripov said. The revenue of Uzbek mobile services providers increased 60% on the year to 143.7 billion sums in January-September, Aripov said. Currently, there are seven mobile operators in Uzbekistan, including the country's largest mobile operator Uzdunrobita, controlled by Russia's largest mobile operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS), Unitel, Coscom, Perfectum Mobile, Buztel, and Uzbektelecom Mobile. Mobile services were introduced in Uzbekistan in August 1992. The first mobile standard was NMT 450. Since 1997, Uzbekistan has had DAMPS and GSM standards. Since September 2001, Perfectum Mobile has provided the CDMA standard in Uzbekistan. (1,158.28 soms - U.S. $1)" From Prime-Tass via Cellular-News, November 10, 2005