TV
Television was introduced in Czechoslovakia in 1953. There are four basic television stations in the Czech Republic, two state and two commercial. In addition there is a city cable TV broadcaster which is available free for apartments with a satellite dish. Technically, a television license (also covering radio) is mandatory and costs 120 CZK per month.
Most shows are shown dubbed in Czech. However, CT2 offers a weekly film in its original language (often English) with Czech subtitles. Some older US TV shows are offered in both Czech-dubbed and original-English versions. To watch the English version you will need a TV with dual language settings (which most contemporary sets have).
Channels:
- CT1 - News and drama
- CT2 - Sports and art programs. At 12:15 there is Euronews
- Nova - This station is notorious for its naked weather reports. A young model (sometimes male) will put their clothes back on as the weather forecast appears on the screen beside them
- Prima - Soap operas
Ceska Televize offers information on programming and Czech TV. A daily program can be found at http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/program/. For a complete list of channels available and descriptions, go to the Mavis site.
Digital box
For around 2500Kc, a digital box can be purchased from most electronic stores that provides extra channels (i.e. CT24 (a news channel), CT4 (a sports channel), 24cz (politics), Top (shopping) and Ocko (music videos)). There is no subscription cost and set-up is as simple as connecting it to the existing aerial.
Cable TV
UPC is the primary provider of both cable and satellite TV. Usually it depends on your buildings pre-existing hook-up which service you choose. For example, if your building is wired for cable, it easiest and cheapest to select cable service. Go to their site to set-up service.
Satellite TV
UPC is the primary provider of both satellite and cable TV. UPC satellite service offers a better selection of channels for English customers, however, most of the programming is still in Czech or German. A Family package (Rodina) + HBO is about 1073 Kc/month.
For more options in English language, UK’s SKY satellite is the best option. A large 2 meter dish is required with installation. In addition, a monthly SKY subscription is required with a viewing card (only available with UK address).
Internet
There is ADSL, cable or wireless service provided in the Czech Republic. Most basic services cost between 600-750Kc.
ADSL - ADSL became commercially available at the beginning of 2003. It grew slowly as plans were prohibitively expensive. Later, Cesky Telecom privatized and prices soon went down. ADSL2+ now has three variants, mostly without with data limits.
Cable - Your decision may rest on whether your area or living space is cable-ready. Cable internet is gaining popularity with its higher download speeds beginning at 1 Mbit/s up to 100 Mbit/s. In general, cable has fastest download times.
Wireless - requires the landlord and the ISP to agree over mounting a dish. This is usually not an issue as the Czech Republic has the most Wi-Fi subscribers in the European Union.
There are many different internet providers within Prague. Again, UPC is one of the most common. Other providers include: U:fon, O2, BCH TeleCommunications s.r.o., ADSL.cz, and Bluetone.
Mobile Internet
Access from your cell phone is quite popular. Plans are based on either GPRS, EDGE, UMTS or CDMA2000 and is offered by all providers. The average cost for an unlimited mobile internet plan ranges around 25 Euro/month.
Internet Cafe
There are many internet cafes all over Prague. You really only need to walk around the corner to find one. Here are a few to get you started.
Modra hvezda
Internet tea house with 30min for 1.50Kc, 31-91min at 1.30Kc, and 91+ costs 1.10Kc.
Address: Praha 9, Jandova 3
Hours: Mon-Fri 11:00-22:00, Sat & Sun 11:00-21:00
Pl@neta
Cafe with excellent internet terminals. great price at 0.50Kc per min.
Address: Praha 2, Vinohradska 102
Hours: 08:00-23:00
Grial Internet Cafe
Serves hot and cold drinks, including alcohol. Offers scanning, printing and CD/DVD burning. Internet access is 40Kc per hour.
Address: Belgicka 31, Vinohrady, Prague 2
Tel. +42 0222 516 033
Hours: M-F 9AM-11PM, Sa-Su 11AM-11PM
Internet Cafe Interlogic
12Mbit/second internet connections, couches and drinks. 1Kc/min
Address: Budejovicka 13, Praha 4
Tel. +42 0241 734 617
Hours: every day 10-22
Blue Mail
The first five minutes are free. An hour of access costs 81Kc.
Address: Konviktska 8, Praha 1, (Old Town)
Tel. +42 0222 521 279
Hours: M-F 10-22, Sa-Su 10-23.
WiFi
Wireless internet, or Wi-Fi, or WLAN is provided by a device that takes internet bandwidth and converts it into radio waves. Then it sends or routes it remotely to any receiver (wireless modem, card, or antenna) that's able to accept the signal. It allows users to be extremely mobile and connected.
Wireless is quite common within the city and can be found at most post offices, cafes, and -oddly- almost all KFC fast food joints. It is expected that when you use free WiFi that you should purchase something while you surf.
The district mayor is even planning to cover all of Prague 5 in a WiFi bubble. To find out more about city projects in wireless, or find hotspots, go to Wireless Prague.
Media
Newspapers
Prague offers many news sources in many different languages so all people can be kept in the know about what is happening around the world. There are dozens of English-language publications.
Radio
The Czech radio scene is well established with news channels, music, and talk. Most channels are on the FM frequency and in Czech. Most channels also offer a website for users to peruse top stories and find out more. Some of the most popular stations include:
Radio Prague is the international service of Czech Radio. They broadcast many programs in English and has an impressive library of past stories on their site. They also occasionally broadcast in Russian, German and French.
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