Archive of articles - May 2014, page 11
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Fico: Slovakia won't up its defence budget despite crisis in Ukraine
SLOVAKIA won't increase its defence budget in the next few years, despite the tension in neighbouring Ukraine, said Prime Minister Robert Fico on Slovak Radio's debate show on May 10.
Gašparovič rejects Kiska’s meeting request
AFTER letting the president-elect Andrej Kiska wait for a month, the outgoing President Ivan Gašparovič turned down his request to meet in order to discuss the details of passing over the presidential powers.
A Night at the Museum
ONCE a year, museums and art galleries open their doors to visitors to offer a host of special events and activities apart from the usual exhibitions, including lectures, workshops, interactive guided tours, concerts, poetry readings, night tours, simulations of archaeological research, demonstrations of traditional crafts, visits to depositories, film screenings and more. Slovakia is participating in this global initiative for the 10th time.
Buzica is 'European Stork Village 2014'
BUZICA, a municipality southwest of Košice in eastern Slovakia, was given the “European Stork Village” award by the German environmental foundation EuroNatur. The title has been awarded annually since 1994, each time to a different country.
Telefónica Slovakia may change name
AFTER Telefónica Slovakia changed hands and became part of the PPF group in January 2014, it will change its name, too. Its new name will likely be O2 Slovakia. O2 is the brand under which the company provides its mobile services.
Less concern over network called
SLOVAKS made 4.9 billion minutes worth of calls and sent 1.1 billion texts and 20.9 million multimedia messages in the second half of 2013, the TASR newswire informed on April 3, based on data provided by the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (RÚ).
Global banks to advise on ST sale
THE STATE will soon select an investment bank to oversee the closely-watched sale of its 49-percent share in telecommunications giant Slovak Telekom (ST). The country’s privatisation agency, the National Property Fund (FNM), addressed 10 investment banks, six of which responded, and the FNM shortlisted three global players: JP Morgan, Citi and UBS, the Sme daily reported on May 7.
Focus on new Slovak drama
THE NATION-WIDE festival of contemporary drama celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2014. The festival, called Nová Dráma (New Drama), takes place between May 12 and 17 and will offer nine plays within a competition, two Hungarian performances within the “Hungarian Focus” (as well as screenings of two films by Hungarian directors and a lecture on documentary theatre) and a host of accompanying events.
Malware increasingly targets Slovaks
FOR SMARTPHONE users from Slovakia a difficult period is about to begin. Until recently they were largely protected from malware by the language barrier, but that is changing as translated or original versions of dangerous code are starting to appear in the Slovak language. Data protection experts are trying to respond to this in time and provide solutions in the form of more effective antivirus and safety software or education on how to protect one’s mobile phone.
Záhorie village hosted communist May Day
THE CELEBRATION of Labour Day on May 1 in the village of Dojč in the western-Slovak region of Záhorie offered a return to the past.
Celebrating peace, lamenting war
TO MARK the 100th anniversary of the First World War, the Slovak Philharmonic performed Vladimír Godár’s oratorio Querela Pacis on April 30 in its final show in the Special Concerts series. The piece was performed by the Solamente Naturali ensemble and its choir, Vocale Solamente Naturali, with artistic director Miloš Valent and soloists Hilda Gulyásová (soprano; standing in for Emily van Evera), Petra Noskaiová (alto) and Tomáš Šelc (bass), conducted by Andrew Parrott.
Firms lag in mobile communications
SLOVAK and Czech companies lag behind when using mobile technologies to communicate with clients. This is one of findings of Digital IQ, a survey which the PwC consultancy firm organised for the sixth time, in which Slovak and Czech companies participated for the first time, the SITA newswire reported on April 9.
Children are starving, report shows
CHILDREN in re-education centres are starving as a result of a special Education Ministry regulation based on which the centres spend €2-€3 for one whole-day meal for a child. This stems from a report on the activities of the public defender of rights for 2013, which was introduced by Ombudswoman Jana Dubovcová to the parliamentary human rights committee on May 6.
Ancient Roman road with altar unearthed in Rusovce
PART OF an ancient Roman road with fragments of period artefacts was uncovered during construction work in Rusovce, on the outskirts of Bratislava.
Roaming charges to drop, end
MOBILE phone users can look forward to Christmas 2015. If everything goes according to the plan, as of December 15, 2015, there will be no roaming charges within the European Union. While the European Commission (EC) believes that ending roaming charges will stimulate entrepreneurship and trade, mobile operators have their doubts about the changes.
More smartphones
BRATISLAVA Region reports having the most coverage by smartphones in Slovakia, where as much as 71 percent of people who shop online own a smartphone. In total, 64 percent of Slovakia’s inhabitants who shop online own such a phone, as discovered in a study by NMS Market Research conducted in cooperation with the price-comparison website Heureka.sk, the TASR newswire reported.
PMÚ investigates SBA
THE ANTITRUST Office (PMÚ) has launched an administrative proceeding against the Slovak Banking Association (SBA) for its actions regarding the elimination of a cash deposit fee and the implementation of a basic banking product. The PMÚ suspects the SBA of creating “a communication platform where sensitive information was exchanged, which led to making the market more transparent, which is a negative in this field”, the Sme daily reported on its website on May 6.
LTE is coming
THE EMERGENCE of new mobile technology ushered in a generational change in providing telecommunications services. First, telephones became portable and people no longer needed to be connected by a physical line. Later, mobile devices gradually slimmed down so that people could carry them in their pockets. With the arrival of the fourth generation network as well as a new mobile operator, Slovakia’s mobile market may face another generational change, which will depend on how both new and existing operators handle the challenges posed by the new technology.
Lajčák decries bloodshed in Odessa
SLOVAKIA’S Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák has voiced concern over the latest violent clashes between pro-Ukrainian and pro-Russian protesters in the Black Sea port of Odessa, which claimed dozens of lives on May 2.
Quote of the week
“You are entering the running military machine which, however, needs some oil to stop squeaking.”
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- From eight to thousands of runners. How Košice marathon rose to prominence Photo
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
- Iconic Slovak barn still draws crowds. Without donors, it might have been lost Photo
- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process
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- Maria Theresa on the banks of Bratislava
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- A mayor resigns over €2.7 million fraud scandal at town hall
- The Kremlin’s security agency has a Russian contractor in Slovakia - no one has noticed
- Fico praises China and Vietnam as models, says liberal democracy has failed
- News digest: Violent gang in Bratislava is under arrest
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- The law changed. Our family papers were ready. Now my kids are Slovak citizens
- News digest: Prosecutor seeks jail for NBS Governor Kažimír as his political support wanes
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- Slovak female triathlete shatters barriers with historic win at Himalayan event
- Weekend: Celebration of fun comes to Malacky Photo
- News digest: Fico’s bloc wants to save money by restricting electoral access
- Slovakia plans to restrict access to new medicines amid funding shortfall
- No more photos or bank statements? Slovakia moves to ease residence process More articles ›
