Vodafone Czech Republic
Encyclopedia
Vodafone Czech Republic is a member of the mobile telecommunications group Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...

. The Vodafone Group established in 1982 and operates in 27 countries across five continents, not to mention partners in a further 33 countries.

History

Cesky Mobil a.s. became the first dual-band (GSM 900/1800) network operator in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 after being granted its license in October 1999. It launched commercial operations of its leading edge GSM network under the brand name Oskar.

Oskar launched commercial operations on March 1, 2000 into the market as the third GSM provider in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

, after Telefónica O2 (formerly Eurotel) and T-Mobile
T-Mobile
T-Mobile International AG is a German-based holding company for Deutsche Telekom AG's various mobile communications subsidiaries outside Germany. Based in Bonn, Germany, its subsidiaries operate GSM and UMTS-based cellular networks in Europe, the United States, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...

 (previously named Paegas).

In less than a year, Oskar built a network comparable to its competition. As of September 30, 2002, Oskar's subscriber base topped 1,139,600 subscribers and its market share exceeded 14%. Oskar was quick to make its international mark as it was nominated for two consecutive years for Best Mobile Operator at the prestigious World Communication Awards (2001 and 2002) in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

In 2003, the company introduced 2in1 SIM
Subscriber Identity Module
A subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module is an integrated circuit that securely stores the International Mobile Subscriber Identity and the related key used to identify and authenticate subscriber on mobile telephony devices .A SIM is held on a removable SIM card, which...

, VPN Firma service (company discounted internal mobile network) focusing on small and medium business sector and launch MMS
Multimedia Messaging Service
Multimedia Messaging Service, or MMS, is a standard way to send messages that include multimedia content to and from mobile phones. It extends the core SMS capability that allowed exchange of text messages only up to 160 characters in length.The most popular use is to send photographs from...

. The IMAX
IMAX
IMAX is a motion picture film format and a set of proprietary cinema projection standards created by the Canadian company IMAX Corporation. IMAX has the capacity to record and display images of far greater size and resolution than conventional film systems...

 sponsored by Oskar opens, the only 3D theatre in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

.

In 2004, Oskar is recognized as the Most Dynamic Company, a new category of the 100 Most Significant Companies in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 survey organized by the Czech Top 100 Association. In September 2004, the company name changed from Cesky Mobil a.s. to Oskar Mobil a.s.

On June 1, 2005, Oskar became a member of the Vodafone Group. The operator launched EDGE
Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution
Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution is a digital mobile phone technology that allows improved data transmission rates as a backward-compatible extension of GSM...

 technology, unlimited data services and secure the UMTS license for the third generation (3G
3G
3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...

) network.

Customers base

2,950,000 customers as of June, 2009.
3,000,006 customers as of December 2009

Český Mobil became the first dual-band (GSM 900/1800) network operator in the Czech Republic after being granted its license in October 1999. It launched commercial operations of its leading edge GSM network under the brand name Oskar.

Oskar launched commercial operations on March 1, 2000 as the third and fastest growing mobile telecommunications network in the Czech Republic. Oskar is credited with bringing about radical changes to the mobile communication market in the Czech Republic, primarily through its positioning of the mobile phone as a consumer product made affordable to everyone.

In less than a year, Oskar built a network comparable to its competition. As of September 30, 2002, Oskar's subscriber base topped 1,139,600 subscribers and its market share exceeded 14%. Oskar was quick to make its international mark as it was nominated for two consecutive years for Best Mobile Operator at the World Communication Awards (2001 & 2002) in London, England.

On June 1, 2005, Oskar became a member of the Vodafone family and in 2006 Oskar Mobil a.s. became Vodafone Czech Republic a.s.

Coverage and Technology

Vodafone CZ's network has covered 99% of the population in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 since December 31, 2005.

Vodafone CZ hold a 3G
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System is a third generation mobile cellular technology for networks based on the GSM standard. Developed by the 3GPP , UMTS is a component of the International Telecommunications Union IMT-2000 standard set and compares with the CDMA2000 standard set for...

 license, but currently operate a GSM only network at 900 and 1800 MHz, with GPRS
General Packet Radio Service
General packet radio service is a packet oriented mobile data service on the 2G and 3G cellular communication system's global system for mobile communications . GPRS was originally standardized by European Telecommunications Standards Institute in response to the earlier CDPD and i-mode...

 and EDGE
Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution
Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution is a digital mobile phone technology that allows improved data transmission rates as a backward-compatible extension of GSM...

 available. Although obliged by the Czech Regulator to launch UMTS commercially by January 2008, they decided to postpone their launch, citing doubtful commercial viability.

Shareholders

Vodafone Czech Republic is 100% owned by the Vodafone Group, UK based global mobile communications operator with interests in 27 countries and over 165 million proportionate customers worldwide (from June 30, 2005).

Headquarters

Vodafone Czech Republic a.s., Vinohradska 167, 100 00 Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

 10, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....


Foundation

The Vodafone Czech Republic Foundation was established to work with non-profit organisations for specific projects within the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. The Foundation receives endowments from both Vodafone Czech Republic and the Vodafone Group Foundation (VGF). The Vodafone Czech Republic Foundation is the 22nd member of the Vodafone family of Foundations. The Vodafone Czech Republic Foundation is a separate legal entity with an active nine-member board from both Vodafone and the Czech non-profit sector.

Competitors

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