• The agreement lets each operator provide fibre services over parts of the other's network while retaining its own tariffs, billing and customer support
  • The first phase in Odesa, Vinnytsia and Kirovohrad will test the operating model and integrated systems across communities with more than one million residents

The fact

Kyivstar and Ukrtelecom have signed an Open Access agreement allowing each operator to use parts of the other's fibre network. Kyivstar will provide Home Internet services over Ukrtelecom's GPON network, while Ukrtelecom will provide fibre broadband over Kyivstar infrastructure.

The first phase will cover selected communities in the Odesa, Vinnytsia and Kirovohrad regions, representing more than one million residents. The companies said this stage will test the cooperation model and the information systems integrated for the project before expansion to other regions.

Each operator will continue to set its own tariffs and commercial terms and remain responsible for billing and customer support. The owner of the underlying network will remain responsible for operating and maintaining that infrastructure. Ukrtelecom says its fibre network extends for more than 95,000km.

The assessment

The agreement lets each operator offer broadband in areas where the other already has fibre. Kyivstar or Ukrtelecom can therefore use an existing access network instead of first extending its own, while keeping control of pricing, billing and the customer relationship.

The harder part begins once customers are connected. The retail operator handles the subscriber, but faults in the physical fibre remain the responsibility of the network owner. Activations and repairs may therefore need to move between two operating teams. The first phase will test whether their systems can manage those hand-offs without adding delays or confusing responsibility.

For BTW readers, the arrangement depends on how well that split works in practice. If a Kyivstar customer is using Ukrtelecom fibre, or vice versa, problems still need to be resolved as one service. Smooth activation and repair in the first three regions would give both operators a workable way to extend coverage without building parallel access networks.

What to watch

Watch the first live connections in Odesa, Vinnytsia and Kirovohrad, particularly activation and fault-repair performance where one operator serves the customer over the other's fibre. Expansion into additional regions would show that the companies are comfortable extending the operating model beyond the initial rollout. Any disclosed service-level or wholesale terms would also clarify how responsibility is divided when problems occur.