Orange in talks to launch branded US service
By Benoit Faucon in Paris
Published: May 5 2002 20:50 | Last Updated: May 5 2002 21:02
Orange, Europe's second largest mobile phone company, is in talks with US operators about launching a branded mobile phone service there, says Les Echos, the French newspaper.
Orange on Sunday declined to discuss the names of potential partners, but speculation centred on Cingular, a joint venture between SBC and BellSouth, and Sprint, the US operator.
Proposals are expected to be put to the board of Orange in June and are likely to be the subject of some debate. If they are accepted, a US Orange service could be launched by the end of the year. Orange had sounded out VoiceStream, the US mobile subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, about leasing network capacity. However talks collapsed and Orange, controlled by France Tele com, is now in talks with other operators, some of which share GSM, its second generation technology. This would make it easier for Orange to offer common services on both sides of the Atlantic.
Cingular is in the process of moving from a rival technology to GSM. Sprint uses CDMA, another technology, but has already signed a capacity-leasing agreement of the type Orange is seeking with Virgin Mobile, the mobile arm of the Virgin group.
Nextel, an independent operator that has iDEN, a technology all of its own, is also considered a potential partner.
Orange's international ambitions have been hampered by the decline in its share price and its parent company's debts. Its only options are to license its brand or lease capacity on another operator's network.
The first Orange service using capacity leased from another operator could be launched in Europe. Orange has consulted the Spanish telecoms regulator about launching a service in Spain. Graham Howe, Orange deputy chief executive, said the company's priority "remains to reinforce our position in Europe, especially Germany".
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