Turkcell at 30: Marking contributions to Türkiye's digital future
A view of Turkcell's headquarters on the Asian side of Istanbul, Türkiye, June 17, 2020. (Courtesy of Turkcell)


Turkish telecom operator Turkcell, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, continues to add value to the country's economy and technology, being itself deeply intertwined with Türkiye's digital evolution, according to its chief executive.

"As Türkiye's Turkcell, we are in every aspect of life. We undertake projects that invest in Türkiye's present and future, from sports to culture, arts and technology," CEO Ali Taha Koç said.

Reflecting on the company's journey, Koç particularly highlighted its involvement in sports, which he said holds a "special place" while providing insight into a number of sponsorships, from football to athletics.

"Because we believe that sports is one of the most effective ways to contribute to the promotion of the country and the Turkish brand," he said.

"With this understanding, we have been the biggest supporter of sports in Türkiye since 2002," he added, providing examples of holding the title sponsorship for Super League for many years, sponsoring Anatolian clubs and being a sponsor of Turkish Women's Football Super League.

Furthermore, emphasizing the firm's strategic importance, and being brand with traces in Türkiye's telecommunications and technology history, Koç said they have achieved many innovations in the sector since the establishment.

"We have become the brand of firsts. We are working with all our strength to bring our country to a position that produces technology, not just using it, and we continue on our way with the aim of making the 'Century of Türkiye,' 'the Century of Digital,'" he explained.

Drawing attention that Turkcell "equals technology for 30 years in Türkiye," he noted that thanks to technology leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship in their DNA, they lead the digitalization journey of individuals and institutions by always focusing on technological innovation.

Today, Turkcell stands as Türkiye's leading mobile operator, leading system integrator, leading data center operator and leading digital service provider, according to Koç.

Emphasizing that the point they reached today surpasses that of being a mobile operator, he said Turkcell has "become a company that produces technology."

Turkcell's numerous contributions to the technology sector include providing AI algorithms for Togg, Türkiye's pride in the automotive industry, he informed and delivered innovative solutions through platforms like Paycell, TV+, BiP, fizy, lifebox and more.

In addition, the company's digital transformation journey from 1994 witnessed it expanding its services and transcending from a period of "connecting everyone to each other," to "connecting everything together," noted Koç.

"I call this period the 'age of togetherness'. In this age of unity, we always try to be there for our users with our digital services."

Turkcell CEO Ali Taha Koç, June 29, 2024. (Courtesy of Turkcell)

"These services are now accessible not only from computers and mobile phones but also from many connected devices. As one of the latest examples of this, we made TV+, one of our most popular services, accessible from Togg, of which we are also a partner," he explained.

"Our main mission is to lead Türkiye as the leader of the digital age. In order to take a leadership role in this rapid change for the future, we shape our investments with four main focus points: cybersecurity, data, energy and artificial intelligence," he added.

Evaluating these areas, Koç further pointed out the wholesome solution they provide to the customers, for example in the field of cybersecurity.

"We offer our cybersecurity and information security experiences, integrated with our technology company competence, to both our corporate and individual customers," he said, adding that they work on developing solutions to the increasing demands of the customers that appear together with the new technologies they have developed in this field.

"We identify threats emerging in the cyber environment, develop measures to reduce and eliminate the effects of possible attacks and incidents, and cooperate at national and international levels to share them with relevant actors," he noted.

Moreover, he touched upon Turkcell's standing considering data center operations and said they operate four new generation centers overall.

He concluded by underscoring the attention they add to community-supporting projects and said, "Our job is not just to provide communication or produce technology. We attach importance to creating projects that will create added value for our society as much as our primary business area."