$1.5billion to build a 4G network and 7,200 towers, see Joseph Waring, “Myanmar $G newcomers ready to roll,” Mobile World Live, February 14, 2018, https://www.mobileworldlive.com/asia/asia-news/myanmar-4g-newcomers-ready-to-roll/; Telenor, in comparison, had 7,800 towers in 2017, see “Annual Report 2017,” Telenor, April 2018, https://www.telenor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Appendix-1-Telenor-Annual-Report2017.pdf. 82 MyTel is jointly owned by Myanmar National Telecom Holding Public Co Ltd (23 percent), Star High Public Co Ltd (28 percent), and Viettel Global (49 percent). Star High is a subsidiary of the military-run Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC). Viettel Global is owned by the Vietnam Ministry of Defense, see Kyaw Phone Kyaw, “Fourth telco MyTel to start selling SIM cards in March,” Myanmar Times, February 14, 2018, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/fourth-telco-mytel-start-selling-sim-cards-march.html. 83 Aung Kyaw Nyunt and Pyae Thet Phyo, “Myanmar’s fourth telco gets licence at last,” Myanmar Times, January 13, 2017, https://www.mmtimes.com/business/technology/24533-myanmar-s-fourth-telco-gets-licence-at-last.html. 84 U.S. Department of the Treasury, “Treasury Designates Burmese State-Owned Enterprises,” July 29, 2008, https://www.treasury.gov/presscenter/press-releases/Pages/hp1105.aspx; Shibani Mahtani and Richard C. Paddock, “‘Cronies’ of Former Myanmar Regime Thrive Despite U.S. Blacklist,” Wall Street Journal, August 12, 2015, http://www.wsj.com/articles/cronies-of-former-myanmar-regime-thrive-despite-u-s-blacklist1439433052; Michael Peel, “Myanmar: the military-commercial complex,“ Financial Times, February 1, 2017, https://www.ft.com/content/c6fe7dced26a-11e6-b06b-680c49b4b4c0. 85 San Yamin Aung, “Launch of Army-Backed Mytel Draws Wary Welcome,” The Irrawaddy, June 14, 2018, https://www.irrawaddy.com/business/launch-army-backed-mytel-draws-wary-welcome.html. 86 Simon Marks, “EU weighs new sanctions against Myanmar over Rohingya,” Politico, August 9, 2018, https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-weighsnew-sanctions-against-myanmar-over-rohingya/. 87 San Yamin Aung, “New Telecom Firm Mytel Transmits First Call,” The Irrawaddy, February 13, 2018, https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/new-telecom-firm-mytel-transmits-first-call.html. 88 Saw Yi Nandar, “Telcos say data helps police solve cases of missing persons,” Myanmar Times, February 4, 2020, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/telcos-say-data-helps-police-solve-cases-missing-persons.html. 89 69 percent of Ooredoo is owned by the Qatar government and related entities, see “Ooredoo Q.P.S.C.: Group Structure and Presence,” Ooredoo, July 2018, https://www.ooredoo.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Ooredoo-at-a-Glance-2018-Final.pdf; 54 percent of Telenor is owned by the state of Norway, see “Major Shareholdings,” Telenor, June 30, 2019, https://web.archive.org/web/20190608193322/https://www.telenor.com/investors/share-information/major-shareholdings/. 90 Saw Yi Nandar, “Telcos say data helps police solve cases of missing persons,” Myanmar Times, February 4, 2020, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/telcos-say-data-helps-police-solve-cases-missing-persons.html. 91 Kang Wan Chern, “Amara Communications to launch 4G+ data-only service,” Myanmar Times, March 2, 2018, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/amara-communications-launch-4g-data-only-service.html. 92 Joseph Waring, “Myanmar 4G newcomers ready to roll,” Mobile World Live, February 14, 2018, https://www.mobileworldlive.com/asia/asianews/myanmar-4g-newcomers-ready-to-roll/. 93 Even at the last moment, MPs attempted to derail the process of giving out licences, see Gwen Robinson, “Myanmar telco auction: the good and the bad,” Financial Times, June 27, 2013, https://www.ft.com/content/befaee5a-22cc-33e3-a8d3-84ce27742dc3. 94 Anonymous source with direct experience, June 15, 2020. 95 “Realising Digital Myanmar,” Telenor, February 2018, https://www.telenor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Telenor-Realising-Digital-MyanmarReport-06-February.pdf. 96 Aung Kyaw Nyunt, “Yangon warns telecoms to get proper permits,” Myanmar Times, December 4, 2017, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/yangonwarns-telecoms-get-proper-permits.html. 97 Thomas Kean, “Myanmar’s broadband price war,” Frontier Myanmar, April 23, 2018, https://frontiermyanmar.net/en/myanmars-broadband-pricewar. 98 Ankit Sawhney and Charu Paliwal, “Intelligence Brief: Where does Myanmar stand today?,” GSM Association via Mobile World Live, December 4, 2019, https://www.mobileworldlive.com/blog/intelligence-brief-where-does-myanmar-stand-today/; Mytel has announced its intention to invest $1.5billion to build a 4G network and 7,200 towers, see Joseph Waring, “Myanmar $G newcomers ready to roll,” Mobile World Live, February 14, 2018, https://www.mobileworldlive.com/asia/asia-news/myanmar-4g-newcomers-ready-to-roll/; Telenor, in comparison, had 7,800 towers in 2017, see “Annual Report 2017,” Telenor, April 2018, https://www.telenor.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Appendix-1-Telenor-Annual-Report2017.pdf. 99 MyTel is jointly owned by Myanmar National Telecom Holding Public Co Ltd (23 percent), Star High Public Co Ltd (28 percent), and Viettel Global (49 percent). Star High is a subsidiary of the military-run Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC). Viettel Global is owned by the Vietnam Ministry of Defense, see Kyaw Phone Kyaw, “Fourth telco MyTel to start selling SIM cards in March,” Myanmar Times, February 14, 2018, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/fourth-telco-mytel-start-selling-sim-cards-march.html. 100 Aung Kyaw Nyunt and Pyae Thet Phyo, “Myanmar’s fourth telco gets licence at last,” Myanmar Times, January 13, 2017, https://www.mmtimes.com/business/technology/24533-myanmar-s-fourth-telco-gets-licence-at-last.html. 101 U.S. Department of the Treasury, “Treasury Designates Burmese State-Owned Enterprises,” July 29, 2008, https://www.treasury.gov/presscenter/press-releases/Pages/hp1105.aspx; Shibani Mahtani and Richard C. Paddock, “‘Cronies’ of Former Myanmar Regime Thrive Despite U.S. Blacklist,” Wall Street Journal, August 12, 2015, http://www.wsj.com/articles/cronies-of-former-myanmar-regime-thrive-despite-u-s-blacklist1439433052; Michael Peel, “Myanmar: the military-commercial complex,“ Financial Times, February 1, 2017, https://www.ft.com/content/c6fe7dced26a-11e6-b06b-680c49b4b4c0. 102 San Yamin Aung, “Launch of Army-Backed Mytel Draws Wary Welcome,” The Irrawaddy, June 14, 2018, https://www.irrawaddy.com/business/launch-army-backed-mytel-draws-wary-welcome.html. 103 Simon Marks, “EU weighs new sanctions against Myanmar over Rohingya,” Politico, August 9, 2018, https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-weighsnew-sanctions-against-myanmar-over-rohingya/. 104 San Yamin Aung, “New Telecom Firm Mytel Transmits First Call,” The Irrawaddy, February 13, 2018, https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/new-telecom-firm-mytel-transmits-first-call.html. 105 Saw Yi Nandar, “Telcos say data helps police solve cases of missing persons,” Myanmar Times, February 4, 2020, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/telcos-say-data-helps-police-solve-cases-missing-persons.html. 106 69 percent of Ooredoo is owned by the Qatar government and related entities, see “Ooredoo Q.P.S.C.: Group Structure and Presence,” Ooredoo, July 2018, https://www.ooredoo.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Ooredoo-at-a-Glance-2018-Final.pdf; 54 percent of Telenor is owned by the state of Norway, see “Major Shareholdings,” Telenor, June 30, 2019, https://web.archive.org/web/20190608193322/https://www.telenor.com/investors/share-information/major-shareholdings/. 107 Saw Yi Nandar, “Telcos say data helps police solve cases of missing persons,” Myanmar Times, February 4, 2020, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/telcos-say-data-helps-police-solve-cases-missing-persons.html. 108 Kang Wan Chern, “Amara Communications to launch 4G+ data-only service,” Myanmar Times, March 2, 2018, https://www.mmtimes.com/news/amara-communications-launch-4g-data-only-service.html. 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