Tele2 Russia), Beeline (since 2002), MTS (since 2003) and MegaFon (since 2006). All of them, in addition to GSM communications, also provide third-generation services in the UMTS standards (Beeline, MTS and MegaFon, Tele2 Russia) and IMT-MC-450 (Tele2 Russia). Apart from MTS, all these mobile operators, built their own networks from scratch. MTS entered the Norilsk market as a result of the purchase of LLC Sibchallenge (the Taymyrsky Telefon (TT) brand) in 2003. Since September 22, 2017, communication with the "mainland" has been carried out via fiber optic transmission; before that, communication could only be carried out via satellite channels; there were no cable lines connecting Norilsk with other cities. A characteristic feature of Norilsk's cable network is the presence of communication cables in sewage pipes (on the surface); on the "mainland" the cables are laid in a cable duct. Norilsk's troposcatter communication station was dismantled in the first half of the 2000s. Since 2017, internet connection speeds have improved due to the installation of a 957-km (595 mi) communications cable laid along the Yenisei River toward Krasnoyarsk. On June 3, 2019, the city switched to digital television, and most TV channels stopped broadcasting using an analogue signal. Fiber optic communication Until 2017, Norilsk was the last major city in Russia without high-speed internet access - access to the network was provided by a satellite channel with a speed of only 1 GB/s. The laying of a fiber optic line was complicated by the long distance (956 km) and severe weather conditions (up to -60 degrees in winter). The country's "big three" telecom operators did not dare to undertake the project, which was instead handled by the Norilsk Nickel subsidiary Unity. Broadband internet started working in the city in September 2017. The launch was attended by Minister of Telecom and Mass Communications Nikolay Nikiforov and President of Norilsk Nickel Vladimir Potanin. Connectivity is now 40 times faster - up to 40 GB/s. The construction of the fiber optic line cost Norilsk Nickel 2.5 billion rubles, an investment that will not pay off, according to Russian business daily Vedomosti. Education Norilsk has a number of higher education institutions: Zabaikalsky State University Polytechnic College Norilsk College of Arts Norilsk Pedagogical College Norilsk Medical College Norilsk College of Industrial Technologies and Service There are also several branches of higher educational institutions based in other Russian cities. The city has 80 institutions in the general