About our History

More than 150 years of accumulated experience within telecommunications, coupled with a pioneering spirit and a quest for knowledge and development – are what have brought Telenor to where it is today. Telenor Group has operations in 13 markets around the world and is still expanding. Go ahead and explore our history – in text, film and pictures.

View the Telenor History

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2001

2001

Telenor increases its share in DiGi, Malaysia in 2001.

  • GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) is launched. GPRS allows the user to get access to the Internet and pay only for the amounts of data transferred.
  • Ownership shares in Germany and Ireland are sold at a profit of more than NOK 21 billion (USD 4.02 billion). Telenor’s stake in North West GSM is also sold.
  • Telenor acquires Comsat Mobile Communications and becomes the world's largest operator of mobile satellite services.
  • Telenor increases its share in Hungary's Pannon to 100 per cent.
  • Telenor increases its share in Malaysia's DiGi to 61 per cent.

2000

2000

The picture shows Times Square in New York and Tormod Hermansen in a live transmission to mark the stock exchange listing of Telenor in 2000.

2000

Tormod Hermansen, Managing Director of Televerket 1991-1995 and CEO of Telenor from 1995-2002.

  • Introduction of IP services over satellite, facilitating a demand for remote one-way and two-way IP satellite communication services in Europe and the Middle East.
  • Telenor AS is partly privatised on 4 December.
  • Telenor buys into TAC/UCOM in Thailand.
  • Telenor enters into an agreement with British Telecom which results in the sale of shares in Esat Digifone. Telenor exercises this option and a gains approximately NOK 9 billion (USD 1.72 billion).
  • Telenor offers leasing of access lines in the fixed network. This gives competitors direct access to the Telenor fixed network subscribers.
  • The Hospital Development Project for Central Norway chooses Telenor as its main supplier of ICT (Information & Communications Technology) infrastructure for phase two of the construction of the new university hospital in Trondheim, Norway. The contract is worth approximately NOK 360 million (USD 68.87 million).
  • The Norwegian telephone directory is available on the Internet.