Chinese messengers and marketplaces have become faster on Kirov residents' smartphones.

      In the Kirov region, the demand for Chinese online services has increased by 82%, which is higher than the overall figure for Russia. The main growth in traffic has come from the messenger WeChat, which also serves as a social network, payment system, and marketplace.

      Previously, traffic to a number of Chinese services took a longer international route: from a user in Russia, to European transport hubs, and then to China. Users from Siberia and the Far East experienced particularly significant delays: their requests first traveled across the entire country and Europe, despite the geographical proximity to China.

      After the launch of the new channel from Khabarovsk to Hong Kong, data is transmitted directly towards the infrastructure of China Telecom. This reduces response time and increases connection stability in services where latency is particularly noticeable: messengers, marketplaces, gaming platforms, and other services. Thanks to the new channel, their response time has been reduced by more than three times.

      "The Asian region is becoming as important for the Russian telecom market as the Western one. We see that user interest in Chinese messengers and marketplaces is growing: traffic in the first quarter of 2026 increased by almost 50% year-on-year. We are developing a system of alternative routes that enhances the reliability and quality of infrastructure, including for users in the eastern part of the country," noted MegaFon’s technical director Alexey Titov.

      The launch of the new channel is a continuation of the development of MegaFon's Asian direction in international connectivity. The operator is strengthening direct traffic exchange routes with key networks around the world to ensure stable access to popular digital services, such as WeChat, Baidu, Taobao, AliExpress, and others.