Vimpelcom overhauls itself from telco to Internet player

Amsterdam

VIMPELCOM is undertaking the telecom industry's most radical overhaul to date, weaning itself from declining revenues from voice and data to focus instead on mobile Internet services such as banking, taxis and messaging, its executives said.

The reinvention by one of the world's top 10 mobile operators is the clearest example yet of a major telecom company deciding to join the technology sector rather than trying to beat it, and may put pressure on others to follow.