Czech mobile tariffs, among EU’s most expensive, aren’t getting cheaper

In Italy, a mobile tariff from operator Iliad with unlimited calls and texts along with 30 GB of mobile data runs just €6 (160 crowns).

In Poland, a mobile package with unlimited data can be purchased from T-Mobile for 50 zlotys, or about 300 crowns.

But in the Czech Republic, T-Mobile doesn’t even offer a package with unlimited data. Tariffs from the operator start at 499 for a measly 500 MB of data, and run up to 999 crowns for a whole 8 GB. That’s almost a quarter of what 160 crowns gets you in Italy.

It’s no secret that the Czech Republic has expensive mobile tariffs; according to a study by the European Commission released last year, mobile packages in the Czech Republic are among the most expensive in the EU, along with those in Cyprus, Greece, and Hungary.

In fact, the average Czech resident pays more than double the average mobile phone tariff throughout the EU.

When Czech operator O2 released plans to unveil a new set of tariffs to begin 2019, some were hopeful that we might see the start of some mobile data price decreases on the local market.

But when the O2 tariffs were introduced last week, residents were dismayed to see nearly-identical pricing laid out among their new data packages: 749 crowns for 3 GB of data, 849 crowns for 6 GB, and so on.

What about a unlimited data package, like the one that can be purchased for 300 crowns in neighboring Poland? It doesn’t even exist in the Czech Republic, with none of the major three operators offering unlimited data at any price.

Still, there may be hope on the horizon.

This year, Czech Telecommunication Office (ČTÚ) plans to open up new frequencies for mobile data use, and will first offer them to companies that currently don’t have bands in the Czech Republic.

This could potentially attract a fourth major mobile operator to the Czech Republic, which might be the only thing that can shake up the local market and start to drive tariffs down.