Foto: Jakub Stadler

To implement the world’s first nationwide access in the Czech Republic it was necessary to offer a Czech language control panel.

Prague-based Internet communications service provider R3 Tel is responsible for the Czech adoption of the .tel domain service provided globally by UK-based Telnic Limited. On Oct. 14 the companies announced the availability of .tel domains in the Czech language, while the control panel necessary to edit .tel sites will be made available shortly. Telnic views the Czech market as particularly important due to strong customer demand. “This is the latest language to be added to the 11 languages already accessible, but the first due to customer demand alongside traditional Chinese,” said Justin Hayward, communications director for Telnic, in a press release.

What distinguishes the .tel domain from both the more common and newly introduced domain names, such as .com, .org and .eu is that it does not require a website to display content. “This is possible because the information a user decides to enter into a .tel domain is actually saved into the DNS, or domain name server, the so-called backbone of the Internet. This eliminates the need for expensive websites, increases download speeds, extends potential reach beyond the web and is accessible from any device connected to the Internet, including mobile phones. Also, because of its unique structure, .tel domains are search engine optimized and again require no special programming or software to achieve this advantage,” R3Tel CEO Steve Cranston told CBW.

The potential is obvious. Not only can individuals register their .tel domain in the form of yourname.tel or whateveryouwanthere.tel, but this is particularly useful when it comes to citywide services or company and institution telephone lists. “Companies can use their .tel domain to create communication centers, streamlining customer contact and funneling calls by department, product category and customer service levels,” Cranston said. The use of generic .tel domains such as hotels.tel or restaurants.tel is also possible, allowing for significantly better customer accessibility.

Still in its earliest stages the potential for growth is evident. 250,000 .tel domains were sold in the first 10 weeks of public availability, making .tel domain the fastest growing domain name in history.  “Yes, the potential is there to become the ‘world’s largest directory’ of contract information. When you see a page of search results, if you notice the phone number or e-mail contact in the summary listing, and see it is usually a .tel offering, this, we hope the association between .tel and what 80 percent of all users are searching for, contact information, is made,” Cranston said.

Czech Republic pioneering for Europe

The Czech Republic is now becoming a showplace for something that does not exist anywhere else in Europe yet. Prague and other selected Czech cities will be pioneers in the implementation of citywide .tel networks. “In Prague there existed a special opportunity. Because the official launch of .tel did not include a Czech language marketing effort, there was nearly zero awareness of .tel and the opportunity to secure a total citywide network, including an extensive list of important generic terms, such as obchod.tel, hypoteka.tel, byt.tel, prace.tel and cestovani.tel, we were able to create a network of over 300 domains, including 20 city sites, unmatched for its size and depth of category,” Cranston said.

Browsing prague.tel it is possible to find many useful contacts sorted under a wide variety of categories such as “taxi,” “services,” “hotel” and “shopping,” among others. This citywide business listing is not alone. Some other Czech cities are presented too, having their own top level .tel domain. Those include Plzeň, West Bohemia; Brno, South Moravia; Ostrava, North Moravia; Karlovy Vary, West Bohemia; Olomouc, Central Moravia; Liberec, North Bohemia; České Budějovice, South Bohemia; Ústí nad Labem, North Bohemia; Kladno, Central Bohemia; Pardubice, East Bohemia; Špindlerův Mlýn, Northeast Bohemia; Hradec Králové, East Bohemia; and Český Krumlov, South Bohemia. “The network is presented as a list of files and usually within three clicks a user can contact a person or business. New categories, subjects, and listings are added regularly, and in approximately three weeks these are catalogued and indexed by the major search engines including Google, [Microsoft Corporation’s] Bing, and Seznam.cz.  … All of our published sites being linked together allows us a higher ranking within the engines because of resource relativity,” Cranston added.

Businesses and individuals will be provided the opportunity to register their own .tel domains here as well. A sales website, Teldex.cz, is launching Nov. 1 in the Czech Republic and will sell .tel domains, including associated local phone numbers and voicemail boxes, as well as a personalized .tel email address for Kč 499 (€19.25) per year. “Moments after purchasing your own .tel name, you receive a username and password. Once you have logged in you will use the control panel to enter your contract details and business or personal information, and that information will be published to the entire Internet, in real time,” Cranston said.

Stirring the waters

The communication and contact searching services in the Czech Republic are getting a new competitor in the .tel domain. Seznam.cz is running its business directory on Firmy.cz while the Czech yellow pages, Zlaté stránky, operated by Mediatel, has its own contact list on www.zlatestranky.cz. Zlaté stránky also recently came out with an iPhone application available through Apple’s local App Store, which takes advantage of iPhone’s GPS module, using your current position to list closest finds first. Centrum.cz also has a business directory with the capacity to verify listed contacts.

“The telecommunications market here is considerably more expensive than elsewhere. There is less competition and my personal experience has been less than good when it comes to customer service. Anything we can do to lower costs, increase competition, and provide solid customer service, improves conditions for all of us,” Cranston said. Asked if the .tel domain has the capability of becoming number one on the local market Cranston joked that the company’s ambitions were considerable but did not need to reach quite that far. “Like there will never be another Beatles, I don’t expect .tel to reach for such goals. Instead we’d be quite happy as the Rolling Stones or U2.”