Lucic: Telekom Srbija will be successful in the US, plans half a million users within three years

Telekom Srbija is continuing to expand its operations beyond Serbia, with the United States among the most significant markets where the company expects to launch operations. Telekom Srbija CEO Vladimir Lucic said that the company should receive authorization to operate in the US market by mid-November, Radio Belgrade reported.

Lucic explained that the procedure in the United States was completely different from that in Europe, where a license was obtained first and equipment installed afterward.

“There, the process is reversed. Since we are a virtual operator, we first had to sign an agreement with AT&T, install the equipment, test it, make the first call, and only then could we apply,” Lucic said.

As a so-called Full MVNO, Telekom Srbija leases only the highest-quality radio access network—from A1 in Austria, Vodafone in Germany and AT&T in the United States—while providing all other services independently. In this way, from the perspective of potential customers, the service functions as though they were using a domestic US operator with excellent coverage.

Services and plans for the diaspora

The primary target market consists of people originating from the region, including Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Croatia. In addition to a US phone number, customers will receive access to a broad range of media content.

“With us, customers can watch more than 500 different channels from this region. The entry-level subscription in the United States, for example, will be $29, and we believe we will be very successful. We base this on the fact that in Austria, where we launched first, we have nearly reached 400,000 users,” the CEO said.

He recalled the company’s already successfully developed network of retail outlets in Austria and Germany, while in the United States the emphasis will be on a simpler commercial model using eSIMs and smart TVs. The company plans to reach half a million users in the United States within three years. Together, the markets covered by Telekom across Europe, Turkey and the United States now comprise around 700 million people.

Financial success and bond issuance

The company is recording significant revenue growth and financial stability. Revenue has risen from €2.3 billion last year and is expected to reach nearly €3 billion this year, while operating profit is expected to exceed €1.5 billion.

Lucic also highlighted what he described as the enormous success of the company’s corporate bond issuance on the Dublin Stock Exchange.

“When we issued corporate bonds, we received offers totaling €6 billion, and this year, when we issued corporate bonds on the Dublin Stock Exchange, we could have raised €14 billion—300 of the world’s largest financial institutions offered us €14 billion,” Lucic said.

The funds have been secured to refinance loans and support further investment.

5G rollout across Serbia

Speaking about the domestic market, the CEO announced the rapid rollout of the 5G network. So far, 2,000 base stations have been installed, with another 500 to be deployed by the end of the year. The goal is for all cities to be covered within one year, while over the next three years the whole of Serbia, including the most remote villages, is expected to have coverage.

“Unlike 3G and 4G networks, 5G has one important feature—very low signal latency when communicating with machines. This effectively makes it possible for robots—for example, a household robot—to operate, as it needs its own 5G coverage to function,” Lucic explained.