Orange: Will Review All 3G Equip Contracts In Sept '03
Wednesday February 19, 5:14 am ET
CANNES -(Dow Jones)- Orange SA , the mobile arm of France Telecom SA ( FTE), said Wednesday that it would review all its contracts to build its third- generation mobile networks in September.
Didier Quillot, Executive Vice President of Orange France, told reporters at the 3GSM telecom conference in Cannes that "it is possible we will change our suppliers."
At present Orange is operating trial 3G networks in London, Lille and Toulouse. These trial networks use access equipment from Alcatel SA and Nokia Corp , while Ericsson is providing core network equipment.
In addition, Orange is using handsets from Nokia and Samsung Electronics Co. , and the "3G portal" that helps users access advanced features is provided by Alcatel.
However, Quillot gave a clear sign to reporters that these suppliers could not be sure of picking up final contracts.
He said that a decision on final suppliers for commercial networks would be based on their ability to deliver working products and financial issues.
"Right now we are doing a technical survey. We have a clear ranking in mind, but we also need to see the reality of shipments in September," Quillot said.
Wednesday, Orange France said it would launch its "Wi-Fi" wireless, high-speed Internet access service in the second quarter of this year.
Orange France said it aims to have 400 sites equipped with Wi-Fi gear by year- end.
The service permits users to surf the Web wirelessly via a fast Internet connection on their laptop computers within certain "hot spots," or high-traffic areas supplied with the Wi-Fi hardware.
Orange said it has already begun installing the equipment in major hotels, conference centers, airports and train stations.
Other hotels, cafes and waiting rooms will also be targeted for the service, Orange said.
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I suspect this will be the rule versus the exception - contrary to vendor-promoted perceptions, wCDMA supplier contracts are tenuous and fluid... And contracts to date have been small and superficial...
And if no vendors meet carrier specifications... |
