Engineer-turned-minister who led the modernization of Soviet communications infrastructure
When the Ekran direct satellite broadcasting system went live in 1981, viewers in the remotest corners of Siberia and the Far East could watch Moscow television with nothing more than a simple antenna. Shamshin received the Lenin Prize for the achievement.
A communications engineer by training, he led development of Orbita, the world's first satellite TV distribution network, and the direct-broadcast Ekran system, then served as USSR Minister of Communications from 1980 to 1989, building the Unified Automated Communications Network that brought television to the vast majority of Soviet homes. After leaving office he chaired the board of Rostelecom, helping to carry Russia's telecommunications industry through the transition.
Activities and affiliations
Career Timeline
- 1949Engineer, lead designer, and senior researcher at NII-100, Ministry of Communications
- 1958Laboratory head at NIIDAR, contributing to the ultra-long-range ballistic missile detection radar system
- 1965Deputy Director for Science, NII Radio (NIIR) — led development of Orbita and Ekran satellite systems
- 1968Deputy Minister of Communications of the USSR
- 1976First Deputy Minister of Communications of the USSR
- 1980–1989Minister of Communications of the USSR
- 1992–1997Chairman of the Board, Moscow Long-Distance and International Telephone (OJSC)
- 1997–2009Chairman of the Board, Rostelecom
Satellite broadcasting and the expansion of national communications
Shamshin brought experience as an engineer in communications research to projects in satellite broadcasting and the national network. From 1949 he worked at a research institute under the USSR Ministry of Communications, contributing to radio-navigation equipment and multichannel radio-relay systems; in 1965 he became a deputy head of the institute for scientific work. He also took part in developing Orbita, a satellite distribution network for television across the Soviet Union. Appointed deputy minister in 1968 and first deputy minister in 1976, he edited the specialist journal Elektrosvyaz from 1969 to 1980.
As minister from 1980, Shamshin oversaw efforts to make television reception available across the country's vast territory and to rebuild communications infrastructure. Tasks included scheduling central television broadcasts across five time zones and increasing regional viewing choices. A 2009 obituary reports that projects led by the ministry made television available to more than 98 percent of the population, while 95 percent could choose between two or more programs. A comprehensive state telephone-access program was developed during his ministerial tenure in the 1980s, and he participated in building Ekran, a direct-broadcast satellite television system. Records differ on whether his ministerial service ended in 1989 or 1990.