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MCT's first operations were developed in Russia. Founded by MCT, Uraltel (Yekaterinburg) and Sibintertelecom (Chita) were formed in 1993. Each received GSM licenses in 1995 and began commercial operations in 1997. In September 2000 MCT completed the purchase of a controlling interest in RTDC Holdings, Inc. ("RTDC"), a MediaOne International affiliate, and holder of eight mobile interests and a local and long-distance switching venture in Russia. Development of RTDC's business ventures began in 1990 through the efforts of US West International ("US West"). US West was among the first telecommunication companies to invest in and commence mobile operations in Russia. The first major commitment was an investment in Delta Telecom in October 1990, followed by an investment in MCC in December 1991. Additional Russian mobile licenses were acquired and developed over the following years in major population centers, such as Nizhny Novgorod, Sverdlovsk and Rostov. MCT's interest in RTDC was subsequently sold in 2002. In December 2000, MCT completed the acquisition of Vostok Mobile, the Russian mobile subsidiary of Golden Telecom Inc. Vostok Mobile was formed in 1994 and developed interests in fourteen Russian mobile ventures. Its joint ventures were awarded mobile licenses in thirteen regions, and each venture initiated commercial operation between April 1995 (Lipetsk) and June 1998 (Novgorod). In May 2001 MCT introduced a national brand, Indigo, to unite the services of its joint ventures with existing regional brands retained on a "co-brand" basis to leverage regional history and local image. In August 2003 MCT sold five of its Russian ventures, representing a developed subscriber base of over 300,000, to Mobile TeleSystems. In November 2004 MCT sold its Siberian operator Sibintertelecom, whose subscriber base exceeded 100,000 people, to Mobile TeleSystems. In December 2004 MCT sold its Voronezh operator Votec Mobile, which has GSM-1800 license, to Tele2. In March 2005 MCT sold its Altai operator Altaysvyaz, whose subscriber base exceeded 38,000 people, to Yeniseytelecom, the daughter company of Sibir'telecom. In November 2005 MCT sold its operator Lipetsk Mobile, which has a GSM-1800 license and test GSM network in Lipetsk region, to Tele2. In February 2006 MCT sold its stakes in three Volga companies - Chuvashia Mobile, Penza Mobile and Saratov Mobile - to a financial investor. In July 2006 MCT sold its stakes in four ventures on the north-west of Russia - Arkhangelsk Mobile Networks, Murmansk Mobile Network, Novgorod Telecommunications, Parma Mobile - to Tele2. In total, MCT has operated through twenty-five ventures in Russia through its history, participating in all phases of formation, network planning and deployment, growth in users and services, and joint venture management.