A1 is the new name and brand of the Vipnet telecom, and as of October 1, all of the company's clients and services will be using that brand, Vipnet executives said in a news conference in Zagreb on Monday, stressing that the re-branding would cover all members of Telekom Austria Group.

The re-branding has already been completed in Austria, Slovenia, and Bulgaria, and after Croatia, it will be done in Serbia, Macedonia, and Belarus as well.

Speaking about the reasons for Vipnet’s rebranding as A1 after spending 19 years carrying its old name, Vipnet Croatia CEO, Jiri Dvorjancansky, said that the company wished to adapt to its clients’ new habits, and needs as well as to new technologies and digital processes on the global market.

“Today we are in the world of global competition, and Vipnet is excellent, and stil is an excellent company, which has been present on the market for 19 years. But we also recognise that if you want to stay competitive on the market, we cannot stay only a local brand. That’s why today we decided to join the family of A1, and actually we will be presented in many countries under the A1 brand. And I strongly believe it will accelerate the innovation, but also new services which we will bring to Croatia,” Dvorjancansky told N1.

Dvorjancansky added that in the next three years A1 Croatia would invest around €300 million in upgrading network infrastructure and services, and noted that new generation 5G networks were essential for new services which increasingly rely on artificial intelligence, robotisation, and other technologies.

“We plan to invest into the network development. Croatia is not standing very well on the DESI index, we are in the 24th position. So our commitment is to increase the quality of connectivity of the customers in Croatia… We are going to invest more than 300 million in the next three years,” he told N1.

The investment aims to increase the number of households A1 Croatia covers with access to 500 Mbps Internet speeds from the current 500,000 to about 1.2 million by 2021, Dvojancansky said.

Follow N1 via mobile apps for Android | iPhone/iPad | Windows| and social media on Twitter | Facebook.