CETIN Group

CETIN was established in the Czech Republic in 2015 when the infrastructure arm of the O2 operator was successfully spun off into a separate company. In 2020, the infrastructure was similarly separated from the commercial activities of Telenor operators in Hungary, Bulgaria, and Serbia in the same way, and the regional CETIN Group was established.

CETIN Group’s vast networks and infrastructure are kept reliable and stable by continuous technical supervision. They provide cutting-edgee voice and data services, including television broadcasting services, IT services, and cybersecurity to Yettel (Telenor) in Hungary, Bulgaria, and Serbia, and to O2 Czech Republic, as well as to other wholesale customers in the region and beyond.

In October 2021, PPF Group and GIC, a major international investment and infrastructure fund based in Singapore, struck an agreement that saw GIC acquire a 30% stake in CETIN Group.

CETIN in the Czech Republic

CETIN’s mission is to build, operate, and constantly innovate a reliable, secure, and fast telecommunications infrastructure, which is essential for the further digitalisation and competitiveness of the Czech economy.

CETIN owns and runs the largest electronic communications network in the Czech Republic and is a wholesale provider of telecommunications services. It offers its services, always under the same conditions, to all telecommunications operators and internet access providers who supply services to end customers via the CETIN infrastructure. 99.6% of Czech households rely on the CETIN network’s fixed and mobile technologies.

CETIN provides mobile network infrastructure services, fixed network services for households and businesses (network access services, xDSL and fibre-optic connectivity, IP TV, and voice services), data services for corporate networks, and data centre leasing. CETIN also provides international voice services for domestic providers and more than 200 telecommunications operators worldwide.

Infrastructure

CETIN’s national fixed network comprises approximately 20 million pairs of copper cables and almost 46,000 km of fibre-optics, though this length is constantly increasing thanks to massive investment. CETIN’s mobile technology, comprising some 6,400 base stations, also draws on this powerful fixed network. CETIN contributes to a network-sharing project and provides its mobile infrastructure to O2 and T-Mobile.

As the owner of the largest communication infrastructure in the Czech Republic, CETIN invests billions of crowns annually in its development. In 2021, the company continued to build FTTH (fibre-to-the-home) connections, increasing the average access network, speed to 177 Mbps, two thirds faster than in 2020.

In 2021, CETIN continued to implement 5G technology, including the provision of 5G signal coverage in the Prague metro. The comprehensive upgrading of technologies used in the mobile access network is increasing the overall network capacity and thus the quality of service. High level of cybersecurity of CETIN’s 5G network infrastructure is guaranteed by using Ericsson’s technology.

CETIN in Hungary

In 2021, the company launched 5G technology, and further upgraded its radio access network. By increasing the capacity and fibre-optic cable coverage, CETIN Hungary has made its infrastructure ready for growth in demand for internet TV. The newly established security operations centre is fundamental to the cybersecurity offered to corporate and retail customers. CETIN’s ISO14000 environmental management system for its backbone network has resulted, among other things, in improved network energy efficiency thanks to the photovoltaic power supplied to selected base stations. This has proved a successful model that CETIN will continue to actively develop in its network in other countries.

CETIN in Bulgaria

In 2021, CETIN Bulgaria launched a number of major projects, including the roll-out of 5G service in more than 160 towns and villages. It offered customers fixed wireless access (FWA), delivering stable, fast connectivity to homes and offices, as an alternative to fixed connections. The acquisition of the technology companies Sofia Communication and Raccom expanded CETIN’s fibre network in the capital, Sofia. Here, with local partners, CETIN offers fast connectivity to corporate customers and other operators.

CETIN in Serbia

Last year, CETIN Serbia successfully pursued a strategy to become, a wholesale provider of infrastructure and innovative smart connectivity solutions. The company has won new major clients, including the government’s Information Technology Authority, to which it provides cybersecurity and data centre services. The company also embarked on modernisation projects in a number of areas and successfully expanded its ISO certification portfolio.