ORANGE TO LAUNCH 3G SERVICES IN FRANCE AND UK IN SECOND HALF OF 2004.

• Position: 3rd Generation Wireless Format

Orange, the leading mobile telephone operator in France, took the opportunity of the 3GSM World Congress in Cannes to announce, on February 23, the launch of its UMTS third-generation services in the second half of 2004 in the UK and France, without, however, going into any price details. The subsidiary of France Telecom will enter the UMTS, or 3G, market in the second half of 2004 in 20 towns in France (covering a third of the population).

Orange has also announced its co-operation with three component manufacturers: Nokia, Alcatel and Nortel Networks, for its 3G network infrastructure in France, and signalled that commercial tests have already been carried out in Cannes, Lille and Toulouse. SFR, the number two French operator, had just prior to this unveiled its launch programme for UMTS services in France (covering 10 cities from November 2004, and a third of the population), without specifying tariffs or phone terminals. Orange gave only the names of Korean firm LG and American firm Motorola for its phone terminals. And in terms of price strategy, Orange simply revealed the different pricing bands: video fixed price, combined UMTS/Wi-Fi (wireless Internet for public places), etc.

When questioned about the launch timetable for 3G services, repeatedly delayed in Europe, the management of France Telecom and Orange put...