Why choose a local internet provider?

The Czech telecommunications market is diverse. For some readers this may be a surprising piece of information, but the ubiquitous media presentation of multinational companies that run mobile networks is everywhere. They like to pretend that they are the only ones who can "sell" solutions to telecommunications needs for Czech households and businesses. Yet our republic can boast a world first – internet here is supplied by hundreds of smaller regional operators with modern technological backgrounds.  

Development of providers' networks in the Czech Republic 

After the telecommunications business was demonopolised in the 2000s, many regional providers were founded to provide access to the internet.  The former SPT Telecom, briefly Český Telecom, behaved like any other state-owned enterprise of the time. During a period of high demand for data services, it "managed" to modernise its dial-up telephone network with the outdated ISDN2 technology. 

This gave an impulse to the emergence of regional companies building their own telecommunications infrastructure. Even in places where the metallic telephone network of the time did not reach, households could order a fast internet connection via wireless microwave links and the first private optical networks. After Český Telecom was sold to the Spanish company Telefónica, a large part of households and businesses were already connected, or had the option of connecting to some alternative network.  

Digitalisation of society and the growth of ICT specialists 

Regional and local providers have thus contributed to the rapid digitalisation of society. However, this is only one of the important reasons to support your local provider. They have taught people in their regions not only to use the internet but also to build and develop important services of the digital society. Thanks to job opportunities in the regions, hordes of ICT specialists emerged who, to put it simply, did not leave for Prague or other big cities. Even more remote regions seized the chance and became a kind of farm for high value-added business. Over these twenty years of ICT business we have stayed at the cutting edge in important fields such as cyber security. We have managed to build a whole portfolio of cloud services, and branch offices of multinational corporations are being set up here, which come to us for all-round IT specialists. The regional business sector in the digital economy employs tens of thousands of engineers and developers, mainly because they found the support they needed here.  

What are the other reasons to support a local provider?  

• You support the local economy. Your money stays in your region. Local companies employ local residents and invest money back into the region.  

• You reduce risks. A local company knows its region and infrastructure best.  

• Speed and reliability of the connection are influenced by the type of infrastructure used, but who among the locals would provide a poor service? You also have technicians at your disposal who know the environment and are keen to meet non-standard requirements.  

• A local company protects your data; you certainly need not fear misuse.  

• You support a competitive environment, which also guarantees the connection of more remote places at a reasonable price. 

• Local companies are transparent and willing to prepare solutions for individual needs at a reasonable price. Do you need "something extra" in places where the basic tariff offer is not enough? Do you work from home in a house at the edge of a forest beyond the village? A local company can offer a solution that will not ruin you financially. 

• And what is also important to us, local companies support local community life and activities.  

• Flexibility: local providers can be more flexible in offering various packages and price options that better suit the needs of the local community. 

Why buy the same service from a multinational corporation that presents itself nicely in TV programmes, but every year sends tens of billions "home" to "itself"? For example, Czech T-Mobile sent a profit of CZK 6.3 billion to its owner in Germany. That is its right, but by buying a service from a local provider you are above all voting for "your" region. 

Author: Bc. Monika Rejzková