O2 Czech Republic

Former Český Telecom logo

Former Eurotel logo

O2 Czech Republic (operating under the O₂ brand) is a major integrated operator in the Czech Republic. It is now operating more than six million lines, both fixed and mobile, making it one of the Czech Republic's largest providers of fully converged services. O2 Czech Republic operates a fixed and mobile network including a 3rd generation network, CDMA (for data), UMTS and EDGE, enabling voice, data and video transmission. O2 Czech Republic is also a provider of ICT services.

Previously two companies, fixed-line operator Český Telecom and mobile operator Eurotel, it was acquired by the Spanish company Telefónica in 2005 and merged into a single legal entity and given its present name on 1 July 2006 .

In 2013, it was announced that Telefónica would sell its stake in the company to PPF and the company would continue to use the O₂ brand for a maximum of four years.^[2] In August 2017 the brand license agreement was extended to 2022, with a 5 year extension to 2027 available.^[3]

The company was initially known as SPT Telecom (Správa pošt a telekomunikací, state-owned telecommunications company), and used to have a monopoly for providing fixed-line services. It was reorganized and renamed Český Telecom (Czech Telecom), after the Velvet Divorce saw Czechoslovakia separate into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993.

Its mobile subsidiary, Eurotel, was founded in 1990 as a joint venture between SPT (51%) and the American joint-venture Atlantic West (between US WEST International, Inc. and Bell Atlantic International Inc.). On launch, it received an exclusive five-year licence to operate a public data network, and a 20-year licence for the 450 MHz band to operate an analogue NMT mobile phone network, and automatically also a right to buy a licence to the future GSM network.

In 2001, it won a license to the third-generation UMTS network. It paid 1 billion korunas immediately and promised to pay an additional 2.5 billion korunas annually. It also agreed to launch the service commercially, at least in Prague, by 1 January 2005. In 2003, it received a one-year extension in exchange for faster payments. In 2005 it was granted another year-long extension due to the granting of a third licence to Vodafone. In the event, UMTS services launched on 1 November 2005. On 1 May 2006, the company launched HSDPA services on top of UMTS services.

In 2004 it launched CDMA/1xEV-DO broadband wireless service (data-only) at 450 MHz, leveraging its legacy NMT network.

In 2012, O2 Czech Republic opened its network to virtual operators.^[4]

On 1 June 2015, O2 Czech Republic has been separated into two mutually independent companies. O2 is the retail operator with the infrastructure provided by CETIN. The separation includes commercial and managerial leadership and management of both companies, including security, IT and control systems.^[5]

On 22 June 2021, PPF agreed a deal with Telefonica to continue to use the O2 brand for another 15 years, until 31 December 2036. ^[6]

The controversial business conduct of O2 Czech Republic with its retail and business customers, including anti-competitive practices and other questionable activities, has led to concerns due to its aggressive tactics, resulting in several legal disputes. Among those are:

• In March 2015, Vodafone Czech Republic sued O2 Czech Republic for abusing its dominant position in the fixed high-speed internet market by charging excessively high wholesale prices, which hindered competition, innovation, and customer choice. The lawsuit sought CZK 385 million in damages for 2011-2014.^[9]
• En julio de 2016, O2 modificó sus tarifas de datos móviles, eliminando la ralentización de internet tras alcanzar los límites de datos sin informar a los clientes sobre su derecho a rescindir los contratos. dTest demandó a O2 por esta infracción, buscando revertir los cambios y proteger los derechos de los consumidores. ^{[ 10 ]}
• En diciembre de 2016, la Oficina Checa para la Protección de la Competencia multó a O2 Czech Republic y a Vodafone con 99 millones de CZK por acuerdos anticompetitivos. ^{[ 11 ]}
• En julio de 2019, los reguladores antimonopolio de la UE acusaron a los operadores de telefonía móvil Czech Republic y T-Mobile CZ de infringir las normas antimonopolio de la UE mediante un acuerdo de compartición de red. Este acuerdo supuestamente restringía la competencia y la innovación, perjudicando potencialmente a los consumidores, especialmente en zonas densamente pobladas. ^{[ 12 ]}

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