PRIVATIZATION - The sale of Český Telecom (ČT) to Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica was the biggest privatization of 2005. The government sold its 51.1 percent stake in ČT for 82.6 billion Kč ($3.3 billion) last spring after several failed attempts to privatize the country's dominant fixed-line operator.

INTERNET - Prague City Hall's plan to create a WiFi network to serve all of Prague with free Internet could lead to investment protection lawsuits from telecommunications companies that have invested billions of crowns in Internet networks, according to media reports.

MERGER - Software companies Cleverlance and Brian Systems have announced plans to merge and create a combined portfolio of products, including

software solutions for financial, telecommunications and public administration clients. The emerging company also plans to expand abroad and become one of the leading information technology

service providers in the Central and East European region.

PRINTERS - Sales of color laser printers increased nearly 10 percent to 3,444 units in the third quarter, according to IDC CEMA, an information

technology analysis firm. Hewlett-Packard had the largest turnover, followed by Konica Minolta and Oki. Oki boasted the biggest increase in sales in the first three quarters of the year and controls approximately 14 percent of the

market.

REGULATION - The Czech Republic ranked near the bottom in a recent study measuring the power and performance of telecommunications regulation in 16 European countries. Commissioned by the European Competitive Telecommunications Association, the study ranked the country 13th. The study measured how effective countries' regulatory authorities are at promoting competition and investment in the telecommunications sector.

ORDER - The Czech arm of Siemens presented the final model of a double-decker electric train to the Swiss Railway Company in Zurich Dec. 2. Siemens will supply the company with 35 trains worth a total of 447 million Swiss francs ($345.2 million/8.4 billion Kč). The trains are being produced at the Siemens plant in Prague.

LOANS - As of the end of November, eBanka had provided 6,700 consumer loans and overdrafts worth a total of 2.77 billion Kč through its Internet banking Web site.