provozovateli

Provozovatel is a Czech term used to designate the person or organization that operates a service, facility, or system. The word emphasizes the operational aspect rather than ownership, and an entity that is the operator may or may not own the underlying assets. The operator is generally responsible for day-to-day management, maintenance, safety, reliability, and compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

In legal and regulatory contexts, the operator often bears duties related to licensing, consumer protection, data privacy, safety standards, and incident response. In regulated sectors, such as transport, energy, and utilities, the law frequently identifies the operator as the entity tasked with ensuring continuous and lawful operation of the service, sometimes under oversight or contractual obligations with public authorities.

Contexts in which the term is commonly used include physical infrastructure and services (for example, operators of public transport, power plants, water utilities, or telecom networks) as well as online services and digital platforms (operators of websites, apps, cloud services, or hosting providers). In the digital sphere, the operator is the entity that makes the service available to users and manages technical infrastructure, user support, security, and content governance within applicable regulatory frameworks.

Etymology and usage notes: the word derives from provozovat, to operate. It is often contrasted with terms like owner (vlastník) or administrator (správce), since the operator is defined by its role in running and delivering a service rather than solely by property rights.