CANAL+ and Orange announce their plan to create a joint venture to merge Orange cinem

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Bertrand Meheut, Chairman of the CANAL+ Group, and Stéphane Richard, Chief Executive Officer of Orange, announced a strategic partnership plan to bring the Orange cinema series package and TPS Star together under one joint venture. The business will be owned 50-50 by the two partners and managed by both on a equal basis. The CANAL+ Group will contribute its production skills, while Orange will provide technological expertise to develop interactive and associated transmedia services.

The Orange ciné max and TPS Star channels will merge to create Orange ciné star, a premium channel that will offer exclusive premier programs, primarily movies and TV series. Orange ciné star will maintain Orange ciné max and TPS Star’s production policy, which is based on delivering quality content. The new channel will be distributed through the Orange and CANALSAT networks and will be available to any operator, an approach which will help to acheive financial balance for the joint venture.

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Deezer and Orange announce more than 500,000 "musique premium Deezer" subscribers

Five months on from signing an agreement for the Deezer Premium+ service to be distributed on Orange's internet and mobile networks, Deezer and Orange are announcing that the “musique premium Deezer” offer, launched on August 19, 2010, has been signed up for by more than 500,000 subscribers.

These excellent results, coming in some way higher than the initial target of 200,000 subscribers by the end of 2010, consolidate the position of Deezer and Orange on the music market, while confirming the market's interest in innovative music offerings, geared to new communications practices.

Buoyed by this success, Orange is moving forward with the integration of Deezer's musical expertise into its internet and mobile offers in order to make it easier for its subscribers to access legal digital music. With this partnership, Orange is looking to create a business model which will help drive growth in the legal market for digital music, while ensuring fair remuneration for players within the music industry. Orange also aims to deploy the Deezer Premium+ service in other countries where the Orange brand is present, through its “musique premium Deezer” offer.

For its part, Deezer is enabling millions of users to benefit from its music solution thanks to the strength of Orange's distribution network (agencies and online store). Deezer Premium was designed to be a very accessible offer, that brings new value to music and allows new growth for the industry.

For reference, the Deezer Premium+ service makes it possible to access 7 million tracks, as well as your favorite artists and albums, across all media (PC, mobile, wifi player, IPTV, tablet, etc.) and in all situations (at home, at work, on the move). It also enables you to optimize how you listen to music thanks to its high-quality audio, its offline mode and its advertising-free format. The Deezer Premium+ service is being offered by Orange through its “musique premium Deezer” service on many of its internet and mobile offers.

** With Orange mobile offers: the "musique premium Deezer" offer is included in the Origami style plans. It is available as an option for an additional €5 per month with the Origami star, Origami jet and Open ranges (12 or 24-month commitment), or €10 per month with all other Orange mobile offers. Lastly, access to the Deezer service is included in the Origami plans for tablet and Multimedia for tablet.
** With Orange internet offers: the service is available for an additional €5 per month in "Formule Plus Musique", "Net Plus Musique", "série limitée La Fibre Musique" and "La Fibre Premium Musique" (12-month commitment), or as an option for €10 per month with all the other Orange internet offers.

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Orange partners with UEFA to sponsor UEFA Euro 2012™, its largest pan-european sports sponsorship across 11 countries


Orange and TP to be an official technology partner of UEFA EURO 2012™
UEFA and Orange to develop and distribute the official UEFA mobile application for UEFA EURO 2012™

Orange underlines its commitment to sport by partnering with UEFA to sponsor the European Football Championship™ across Orange’s 11 European countries
As an official technology partner, TP (Orange Poland and TP) will provide all telecommunications services, fixed and wireless in Poland, to support the delivery of EURO 2012


Orange today announced that it will join an elite family of global brands to become an official sponsor of the European Football Championships (UEFA EURO 2012™) to be held in Poland and Ukraine in June and July next year. As a global sponsor, the partnership will enable Orange to deliver a whole host of exciting products and services associated with EURO 2012 across its 11 key European markets including the official mobile phone application for EURO 2012. TP (Orange Poland and TP) is today also announcing its role as an official technology partner for EURO 2012 and will provide all fixed and wireless telecommunications services within Poland as part of UEFA’s worldwide distribution solution.

As the first truly pan-European sports sponsorship the company has ever undertaken, EURO 2012 affirms Orange’s commitment to deliver content loved by its customers, with sport as a key facet of its brand. Knowing that sport – especially football – is a huge passion to many of its customers, Orange will bring the tournament alive on its internet and mobile platforms via its European network, offering bespoke content and services to enhance its customers’ experience of the matches.

Olaf Swantee, EVP of Operations in Europe for Orange said: “This is a significant and exciting announcement for Orange. There are huge synergies between the Orange brand and the values of UEFA and the European football championship. Our commitment to honesty, fairness and delivering the best possible experience at all times will be brought to life in the lead up to and during the tournament with content, competitions and experiences that bring our customers closer to both brands.”

David Taylor, CEO, UEFA Events SA, said: “We are delighted to welcome Orange and TP to the UEFA EURO 2012™ sponsorship family. We expect EURO 2012 to be a huge success and are excited about the prospect of taking Europe’s elite national team competition to Poland and Ukraine. As Host Broadcaster for UEFA EURO 2012™ it is crucial we have best-in-class services from Orange and TP, our technology partner, in order to deliver the live match signals from Polish stadiums to UEFA's many broadcaster partners and then on to football fans around the world. In addition, the various Orange consumer services to be developed for UEFA EURO 2012™ will ensure fans across the Orange territories have new ways of enjoying and sharing the passion of a Europe's finest national team tournament."

Maciej Witucki, president of TP Group, added: “We are proud that Telekomunikacja Polska and Orange will be part of the technology solution supporting UEFA EURO 2012™. We have the competencies to provide UEFA with the highest class ICT support and we have already passed the first test, supporting the EURO 2012 Qualifying Draw in Warsaw. Together with UEFA we are going to provide the European Football Championship with technology solutions, which will enable communication and data transfer among official UEFA EURO 2012™ sites in Poland including, critically, the stadiums and the International Broadcast Centre. We also plan to assign a separate network dedicated to UEFA EURO 2012™. This will enable us to give our customers, clients and football fans new ways to share their experience and enjoyment during this festival of football.
Our investments in Euro 2012 are also key to supporting our market growth, now and in the future. I am confident that the partnership between UEFA, TP and Orange will have a major contribution to the success of this historical event, for Poland.”

Details regarding specific activities are being finalised for each market, but opportunities to win tickets for the tournament along with exclusive Orange and EURO 2012 branded gifts for our customers and other EURO 2012 content will form a key component of Orange’s customer-focused sponsorship activity. In addition, the official mobile application will contain new and bespoke content developed in partnership with UEFA.

Severine Legrix De La Salle, Vice president, Brand for Orange, concluded: “The previous edition, UEFA EURO 2008™ was broadcast across 231 countries and territories around the world, attracting an average live TV audience per match of 147 million and an audience reach of 1.4 billion viewers during the tournament. We are determined to deliver a sponsorship package that brings the tournament to life for our customers. Our aim is to create an emotional connection between our brand and consumers by develop exciting and compelling products and services based around one of the world’s greatest sporting events.”

The territories covered under the agreement are Spain, Poland, France, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Romania, Austria, Luxembourg, Moldova, Switzerland and Armenia. As well as promotions to win tickets to matches, Orange’s rights include the creation of premium products using a combination of the Orange and EURO 2012 logos and imagery. Orange perimeter advertising will also be visible, as will branding on tickets, at numerous pre-tournament events and in stadiums during the matches along with branded presence on the EURO 2012 section of UEFA’s official website.

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Orange enters into exclusive negotiations with Dailymotion with a view to acquiring a 49% stake in its capital


Once the operation has been approved:
Orange will take a 49% share in Dailymotion for 58.8 million euros
Dailymotion, the 2nd largest online video site worldwide will provide Orange with the opportunity to develop a complete multi-screen video offer

Orange has entered into exclusive negotiations with Dailymotion with a view to acquiring a 49% stake in the online video site. Beginning in 2013, the project allows Orange a progressive capital increase to 100% and also allows for the integration of new business partners. The signature of the final agreement should be reached in the coming months that will enable both parties to optimize their video services and enrich their respective offers.

This operation fully illustrates Orange’s content strategy, which aims to benefit its customers by building on the Group’s role as an aggregator and broadcaster of content through the development of strong partnerships. This strategy was exhibited in other recent announcements in areas such as the press, publishing and music businesses, e.g., through the launch of Read and Go and through Orange's partnership with Deezer.

This project is strategic for Orange insofar as the Dailymotion video platform will immediately provide the Group with a solution that can meet the increase in its customers’ video use across all connected screens (via internet, WiFi or 3G). The operation will also enable Orange to accelerate its multi-screen strategy by anticipating the growth in high definition, 3D and continuity across all screens.

Video content, like social networks, has become a core product in the digital world. In the United States, the average time spent on Internet videos is now more than 12 hours a month per web user. In France, one out of three smartphone owners watches videos each week. With a billion videos watched each month and 93 million unique visitors, in six years Dailymotion has developed the know-how, ability and technological expertise that make it a leading player worldwide and a flagship brand in online video.

For Dailymotion, this project represents an opportunity to enrich its content offer and to benefit from Orange's innovation and marketing skills in order to extend its services across all digital screens for all users. With an already strong international presence and 80% of its users located outside France, Dailymotion will be able to accelerate its growth internationally using the presence of the Orange group in 32 countries. Orange will also reach a critical size in the field of audience and online services.

This operation will be subject to consultation with staff representative organizations, as required by French law.

Stéphane Richard, the CEO of France Telecom-Orange, stated: “This operation once again illustrates the role that Orange intends to play in the content value chain. Although we are no longer publishers ourselves, we are strengthening our position in the fields of aggregation and distribution. We will provide our customers with an enriched and innovative video offer combining Dailymotion’s know-how and diversity of content with the quality of our networks across all connected screens. Our role is to support our customers in this digital revolution - we would like to bring them into the 'Cloud Video’ world where Dailymotion is a major player.”

Cédric Tournay CEO of Dailymotion, stated: “We are delighted with this agreement as it will bring Dailymotion into a new era of development, six years after it was founded. This relationship offers many synergies and opportunities, particularly in the technology area. It will empower Dailymotion to build new services, enrich its content selection and continue its aggressive audience growth across the world.”

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Orange reinforces its Very High-Speed Broadband ambitions with a commitment to deploying solutions in every region of France

France Telecom-Orange has replied to the French government’s request for detailed information on its plans to invest in Very High-Speed Broadband networks (Appel à Manifestation d’Intention d’Investissements), which formally closed on 31 January 2011. This request was formulated as part of the National Program for Very High-Speed Broadband.

In its response, the Group has reaffirmed and reinforced its commitment to deploying Very High-Speed Broadband networks in France. The development of such networks is an important factor that will stimulate economic growth and competition in the future. It is also one of the driving forces of the Group’s corporate project, Conquests 2015.

France Telecom-Orange has set out a clear ambition to deploy fiber-optic networks in 3,600 French communes by 2015. These will be spread across 220 agglomerations, including all large and medium-sized towns or cities. In total, the Group will offer network coverage for 10 million French households by 2015 and 15 million (60%) by 2020.

To achieve this, the Group will cooperate with other interested network operators by offering access solutions as set-out in the regulatory framework. In particular, the Group will offer co-investment solutions.

France Telecom-Orange plans to invest 2 billion EUR in this program over the period 2010-2015. This budget accounts for feedback from deployment projects that have already taken place.

For regions that are not explicitly mentioned in this response, the Group will adopt a cooperative approach with local authorities in order to provide them with intermediary solutions (Fiber-to-the-Curb, satellite, etc.) that offer a step-change towards Very High-Speed Broadband. In particular, France Telecom-Orange will participate in the development of Public Initiative Networks (Réseaux d’initiative publique) as is the case in Laval (Mayenne, north-west France). The Group plays an active role in the government’s Very High-Speed Broadband pilot program and is already involved in four of these projects.

The application of the regulatory framework outside very dense areas will be a determining factor in facilitating these investments, and the Group will be particularly vigilant in this respect.

The deployment of fiber-optic networks will facilitate the emergence of new services in areas such as 3DTV, social networking, video, music and games. Such a deployment is consistent with the Group’s overall content strategy, which aims to develop partnerships with content providers (Deezer, Canal+, Dailymotion, etc.). By increasing network capacity, the Group will enable the development of innovative services based on a rich and diverse catalog of content; and this in turn will add value to the Group’s networks.

The deployment program is also in line with the needs of professionals and businesses.

The Group has already deployed FTTH fiber networks in around fifteen of France’s biggest cities and the surrounding suburbs. The deployment program for the main towns beyond very dense areas has also been announced according to a calendar that is in line with regulations.

“I am very pleased to be able to reaffirm and even reinforce our ambitions regarding very high-speed broadband networks as part of a drive to provide the entire French population with access to high-quality digital services,” said Stéphane Richard, Chief Executive Officer of France Telecom-Orange. “This commitment clearly illustrates the new dynamic that Orange has embarked upon since the launch of our Conquests 2015 project. To achieve this ambition, we have mobilized our staff and our expertise as a network operator with a view to consolidating our market position in France and making the most of the growth potential that this network can offer for the year’s to come. This will be done within a spirit of openness with regards to our environment and to other operators.”

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Appointments in Orange Business Services

Philippe Roger becomes Head of "IT & Customer Solutions Roadmap"
Benoît Eymard replaces Philippe Roger as Head of French Large Accounts

Philippe Roger, who has been Head of French Large Accounts since 2008, has been appointed Head of "IT & Customer Solutions Roadmap", and will act as the chairman of the Orange Business Services Product Board. This entity's mission is to simplify operating patterns and improve operational efficiency: it will guarantee consistent steering for the information system, the process management and the product roadmap, focusing on anticipating the evolution of customer usages. Philippe Roger is a graduate of the Paris Ecole Centrale and was Purchasing Director for the France Telecom Orange Group before joining Orange Business Services in 2008.

Benoît Eymard has been appointed Head of Orange Business Services French Large Accounts, replacing Philippe Roger. A graduate of both the Ecole Polytechnique and Telecom ParisTech, Benoît Eymard has gained much experience within the group France Telecom Orange, in particular as Orange Technical Director and Paris Regional Director. He was recently in charge of major projects for Orange France, in particular the French roll-out of fibre-optics.

The two appointments will take effect on March 1st.

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Jean-Marie Culpin appointed Group Marketing Director for Orange

Jean-Marie Culpin has been appointed Group Marketing Director for Orange. Reporting to Jean-Paul Cottet, Executive Director in charge of Marketing and Innovation, he is responsible for defining and implementing the Group’s marketing strategy.

His previous position was Mobile Marketing Director for activities in France – a position he took up in 2008.

Jean-Marie Culpin, 45 years old, a graduate of X-Télécom, joined the Group in 1990 to work for the Large Accounts Management team. He then worked in a number of positions in France and overseas, mostly within the mobile market. From 1995 to 1998, he was Technical Director for FT Mobiles International where, in particular, he won a large number of overseas licences. From 1998 to 2002, he was the France Telecom Long Distance Satellite Strategy Manager, before taking over management of the Enterprise activity within Orange France where he launched, among other products, Business Everywhere, and the first 3G-based offers on the business market.

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Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom-Orange to explore potential areas of cooperation for customer benefit

Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom-Orange will explore potential areas of cooperation in a defined set of technology fields. The two groups share the common view that cooperation is becoming increasingly important in today’s telecom industry. Both have agreed to define a set of cooperation fields in which exploratory talks will be engaged with the aim of identifying potential value creation for both companies and that will benefit their respective mobile and fixed line customers in terms of quality of service and easy to use service offerings.

Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom-Orange have agreed upon the following set of potential cooperation fields:
radio access network sharing in Europe
improving WiFi user experience while roaming
equipment standardization
Machine-to-Machine (M2M) standards and quality of service for cross-border services
a set of new growth business development domains: technical cooperation on home media servers, development of cross border e-Health services, connected cars technology and in-car infotainment services, content and technical enablers for TV and video services

As of today, Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom-Orange have announced the first examples of this joint work by the creation of a machine-to-machine cooperation agreement and a joint project on the improvement of the WiFi user experience while roaming.

The specific cooperation agreement for M2M is aimed at increasing the quality of service and standards for cross-border machine-to-machine (M2M) communications. The agreement, which initially covers France, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg, aims to include all mobile network operators affiliated to the two groups, and to expand globally through partnerships with other mobile network operators. It will be the foundation for a seamless network that can offer reliable cross-border services anywhere in the world and incubate new innovations. M2M communication is an enabling technology that will facilitate the development of e-Energy, e-Health, connected home and connected car services and will bring about the internet of things.

On WiFi, both groups are jointly exploring solutions for improving their customers’ experience and roaming conditions on each others WiFi network. Both groups share the conviction that the international traveller of tomorrow will want to be able to download large amounts of data, for private or business reasons, without having to be burdened with the choice between WiFi access and 3G mobile access.

“Operators are expected to increase quality of service and to eliminate barriers and borders when using services,” said Ed Kozel, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, Deutsche Telekom. “We are confident that the cooperation with France Telecom-Orange in dedicated areas will enable both of us to bring sustained benefits to our customers.”

“With this collaboration, our two groups will be able to address new growth opportunities as well as operational efficiency issues in a limited and targeted set of business domains for the benefits of our respective customers, while maintaining our individual strategies,” said Elie Girard, Executive Vice President Strategy and Development of France Telecom-Orange.

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this news public via official web site orange that include sat channels and rest issues this package

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Orange extends its comprehensive set of care services - Orange Care - by bringing ‘Expert Assistance’ for smartphone customers in-store following hot-line success

Orange is extending the reach of its Expert Assistance programme, a paid-for service giving smartphone customers access to technical advice and guidance, beyond phone and internet hotlines to the high street. 3,000 specialist in-store Experts will provide face-to-face and personalised support to smartphone customers in 1,300 shops, across 13 countries by the end of H1 2011. Details include:

3,000 specially trained customer service representatives will offer guidance and support across handsets and operating systems in shops across the European footprint
300 shops will create “Care Corners”, specific areas dedicated to smart-care services where customers can get paid-for specialist smartphone support.
Expert Assistance currently supports the most popular operating systems including Android, Symbian, Apple, RIM, and Windows Phone 7
‘Get Started with Smartphone’ - whereby Orange retail staff help customers set up their phones for their use - will be available across 13 countries by the end of H1 2011
‘Copy & Keep’ service – a data and content back-up solution that allows phone-to-phone content transfer or storage now in 1,300 Orange shops in 13 countries – up 30% since Q1 2010.
Orange aims to serve more than one million Orange Care customers in store in 2011

Expert Assistance launched commercially in June 2010; the expansion of the service into retail spaces, less than one-year after the innovative hotline service was deployed, demonstrates Orange’s success in offering market-leading care services that assist the customer through the whole device lifecycle. In the six months since its June launch, 100,000 customers used the hotline service, and call volumes have risen by 10 per cent each month.

Philippe Bernard, Executive Vice President, Sales and Care, comments: “Orange Care is the most comprehensive set of care services available on the market today. We believe it is truly innovative and differentiating us to customers in the market. The success of the Expert Assistance hotline to date indicate that we are on the right the track but our expectation is that revenues from our point of sale Expert Assistance will exceed Internet and Smartphone Expert Assistance Hotline revenues in 2011.”

Orange Care is a comprehensive end-to-end portfolio of services that looks after the customer throughout their lifetime with Orange - covering Expert Assistance, Security, VIP services and Recycle and Reward.

Orange secured three million monthly subscribers to Orange Care by the end of 2010 - its first year of operation - and expects to achieve 10 million customers overall by the end of 2011.

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Orange accelerates the deployment of mobile contactless services with launch of the Samsung Wave 578 in Europe

As the first European operator to announce that we would deploy a new generation of SIM cards and handsets to facilitate mobile contactless services, Orange has extended its successful and long-term relationship with Samsung to deliver handsets enabled for NFC (Near Field Communications) firstly in the UK, France, Spain and Poland. The Samsung Wave 578 will be launched by Orange in Spain, Poland and France from Q2 this year* before being rolled out to the wider Orange European footprint. It will be the first in a series of NFC-enabled handsets that will include devices from LG and Nokia, amongst others. Orange expects that by the end of 2011 over half of all new smartphone models to be added to its range for Europe will be optimised for mobile contactless services.

In line with Orange’s strategy to give mobile customers the best possible access to content and new services, the Orange Samsung Wave 578 is equipped with NFC connectivity in a sleek and user-friendly design. It runs on bada 1.1, Samsung’s operating system. Wave 578 enables fast data rates and easy information with Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, and USB 2.0. The device will also feature Orange Signature services including Orange TV-j Player, Orange Maps, Orange Messenger and the Orange Application Shop. The inclusion of SIM-secured contactless capabilities will lay the foundations for Orange to enable a tranche of new services from partners in the future, ranging from mobile payment to ticketing and transportation.

Anne Bouverot, Executive Vice President, Mobile Services, Orange, said, “We are spearheading the third biggest revolution in the mobile arena, after mobile voice services and the explosion in mobile data. Mobile contactless services will change people’s daily lives. We’re very pleased that partners like Samsung are helping us to accelerate these plans. Our clear ambition is to create a vibrant eco-system and by combining our own mobile innovations with the best handsets, we can fulfil our vision of bringing new mobile services that will benefit everyone.”

“Samsung provided us with the ‘Player One Cityzi’ handset which enabled the Cityzi service in Nice to become one of the world’s first mass-market commercial contactless services,” added Bouverot. “With the availability of new NFC-enabled devices from Samsung, and many more from our other handset partners to come in 2011, we are moving closer to a world in which we believe mobile contactless services will soon become the norm.”

DJ Lee, Executive Vice President Global Sales & Marketing, Samsung's Mobile communications Business, said, “We are very pleased to offer Orange customers a strong product portfolio across fixed home and mobile. With the newly launched mobile contactless service, Samsung and Orange will provide true benefits of a smart mobile life to Orange customers. In 2010, we have really seen the relationship strengthen in the area of mobile multimedia as customers enjoy new offers such as the Samsung Wave, Samsung’s own bada platform based smartphone and the popular Samsung Galaxy S, Android powered smartphone. This, in addition to the recently launched Samsung Galaxy Tab with customised Orange services, is a healthy and successful collaboration that stems from a shared desire to really focus on the quality of the customer experience.”

Orange and Samsung are also working more closely than ever to give customers a simpler, richer experience and access to specialised customer care services.

the Orange Cityzi Pass in Nice, France
The Orange Cityzi Pass enables Orange customers in Nice, France to use Cityzi contactless services on their mobile handset. Services include local urban transport, payment in over 1000 shops, loyalty, couponing and tag reading. Orange Citzyi Pass is Orange’s commercial service offering of a project called Citzyi (www.cityzi.fr), coordinated by The Association Française du Sans Contact Mobile (AFSCM). The project includes other operators - SFR, BYT and the MVNO NRJ Mobile – and service providers from various industries, such as BNP Paribas, Crédit Mutuel/CIC, Véolia Transport, La croissanterie, Game and Franprix.

Mobile Contactless Services
Contactless mobile phones are a new generation of mobile phones, able to interact with their environment thanks to NFC (Near Field Communication), a short distance wireless connection technology. The phone is fitted with a “second antenna” that manages NFC exchanges and all you need to do is to move it near a scanner to trigger an action, such as validating a transport ticket, paying for purchases or accessing information, amongst others.

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Orange launches Orange Gestures and ‘smart’ Live Wallpapers for Orange Android Homescreen

Unique Orange designs enable customisable and instant access to applications and services

Developed by the Orange Group Devices, Design and R&D team, Orange Gestures lets users draw natural and intuitive gestures on their homescreen to give one-stroke access to their favourite applications or services
Exclusive to Orange Android Signature smartphones, new Orange Live Wallpapers redefine ‘live’ wallpapers by integrating application functionality into the homescreen experience itself – six new ‘smart’ wallpapers will be launched in 2011
Orange Gestures and Live Wallpapers will be available on all new Orange Android Signature smartphones across the Orange footprint from Q2 2011.

Orange is today launching two new and exclusive Orange Homescreen developments, Orange Gestures and Orange Live Wallpapers, for Android smartphones*. Orange Gestures provides 27 designs which users can assign to an action or application, such as speed dialling, sending a text to a specific contact or launching a weather widget or a game. There is no need to scroll, search or click through multiple steps in order to launch an application or more importantly, an action within an application.

For example, if Rachel texts her best friend Alison frequently, once a gesture is assigned to this action Rachel can draw a square, which launches a text to Alison; alternatively, drawing a heart will automatically enable Bob to phone his wife, without having to access his phone screen or address book.

For the first time, Orange Live Wallpapers have taken the concept of ‘live’ wallpapers one step further by integrating the actual functionality of a specific application into the dynamic aesthetic of the wallpaper design itself, making them much smarter than standard designs. The first of these ‘smart’ wallpapers to launch in Q2 2011 is Orange Candles, a photorealistic candle that burns down in six stages, giving a true indication of battery life**. The design is also reactive; the flame flickers as a user scrolls from left to right. Five more designs will be rolled out across Orange Android Signature smartphones in 2011, allowing customers to choose a homescreen experience that matches their style and needs.

Yves Maitre, senior vice president, Orange Group Devices and Mobile Multimedia, said, “ We are continually looking at ways to bring added value to our customers through the Orange Homescreen, offering simple, differentiating services and improved functionality. The homescreen plays a fundamental role in our Signature strategy, introducing both new and relevant Orange and third party services to our customers. Orange Gestures and Orange Live Wallpapers are our latest offerings to harness the innovation capabilities of the Android platform on our Signature phones. We make sure every pixel counts in order to deliver Orange customers with a sophisticated, stylish and simple experience.”

Yves Christol, Head of the Advanced Software Center for Devices, Orange Labs, added, “Ultimately this experience must be totally useful as well – whether that’s quickly being able to tell how much battery you have, or using a familiar gesture to call your closest friend. Our latest customer-centric innovation demonstrates perfectly how Orange has a role as a digital coach, helping our customers get the most from their devices and services.”

Orange Gestures and Live Wallpapers will be available on all new Orange Android Signature smartphones across the Orange footprint from Q2 2011. Orange will showcase both these innovations at Mobile World Congress 2011

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Orange makes purchasing Windows Phone 7 applications and content easier for customers by enabling payment on their mobile phone bill

Providing a simpler and more secure way for Orange mobile customers to pay for Windows Phone Marketplace content on their mobile phone bill

Launched on 23 February in mainland France, the new service will soon be available in the UK.

Following the launch of Windows Phone 7, Orange, a strategic partner of Microsoft, is now offering a new service: deferring the payment of all content purchased on the Windows Phone Marketplace to the customer’s mobile phone bill.

The new service, offered exclusively to Orange mobile customers, will transform the user’s mobile bill into a new means of payment for all content purchased on the Window Phone Marketplace.

Simple, quick and secure; paying on their mobile phone bill allows Orange customers to avoid giving their bank information when opening a Microsoft account. When purchasing content on the Windows Phone Marketplace (games, music, , etc.), the user simply confirms that payment will be deferred to their mobile bill and they can then download any free or paid content instantaneously.

Orange is the first operator in Europe to offer the use of the customer’s mobile bill to pay for content bought from the Windows Phone Marketplace.

Xavier Perret, VP of strategic partnerships at Orange, explains, "It is a new step forward in our partnership with Microsoft on Windows Phone 7. It will allow our customers to enjoy the real benefits of their content purchases from the Windows Phone Marketplace by offering them a simpler and more secure payment method."

"We are delighted to be making the Orange customer experience even easier. Deferring payment to the user’s mobile bill falls squarely in line with our vision of how the smartphone should be used, combining both simplicity and ease of use. It is now even simpler to download applications from the Windows Phone Marketplace, which will make games, content and mobile apps fans happy, not to mention mobile TV enthusiasts," adds Carlos de Vries, General Manager of Windows Phone marketing.

Orange is also launching a new category on the Windows Phone Marketplace, including applications developed by Orange and a selection of applications from other publishers. The new "Orange sélection" will offer a selection of applications from all categories in the Windows Phone Marketplace (games, utilities, etc.) in a single space.

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Thanks to its solid commercial performance, France Telecom-Orange achieved its 2010 objectives and confirmed its commitment to organic cash flow of 8 billion euros in 2011 (1)

The number of Group customers at 31 December 2010 grew 6.0% year on year on a comparable basis to 209.6 million

Consolidated revenues rose 0.6% in 2010, excluding regulatory effects, to 45.503 billion euros, with a second-half increase of 1.2% driven by all countries

In France, a reinvigorated commercial strategy resulted in:
- an estimated 36% share of 4th quarter net additions in the ADSL market;
- in mobile, customer market share was 46.6%

In line with our goals, erosion of the restated EBITDA margin for 2010 was limited to -0.9 percentage points, reaching 34.4%, with a total restated EBITDA of 15.642 billion euros

Net income Group share was 4.880 billion euros in 2010, an increase of 28% (2)

Net debt was 31.840 billion euros at 31 December 2010, a decrease of 694 million euros over the year. The restated net debt to EBITDA ratio was stable at 1.95

In line with the Group’s 2010 objectives:
- CAPEX represented 12.1% of revenues, with investments of 5.522 billion euros;
- organic cash flow was 8.11 billion euros1

The Group confirms its financial targets for 2011 and renews its commitment to pay a dividend of 1.40 euros per share for 2010, 2011 and 2012

For 2010, the balance of the dividend (0.80 euros per share) will be paid on 15 June 2011 (3)



Commenting on the Group's 2010 consolidated results, France Telecom CEO Stéphane Richard said:

“The Group’s strong performance in 2010 signals we are on the right track with our new business plan Conquests 2015. Thanks to the collective commitment of all our colleagues we have restored both energy and ambition to our commercial offering while also meeting all our financial objectives.

"For example in France our quadruple play offer, Open, met with great success and as a result our share of new ADSL subscriber wins returned to the level in line with our market leader status. The implementation of a new social contract has set in place the foundations for a new and constructive way of working within the company.

"In Spain, in spite of a testing economic backdrop, we very significantly improved our market position in the mobile business while increasing our profitability.

“We also strengthened the Group’s international presence in 2010 by rolling out our brand in Tunisia, by establishing ourselves in Morocco, by acquiring an interest in Meditel and by bringing clarity to our relations with our partner in Egypt. We have already made good progress towards our objective of doubling our revenues in the emerging countries by 2015.

[powerman]

Re: CANAL+ and Orange announce their plan to create a joint venture to merge Orange c

Message from Didier Lombard

”I have decided today to give up my role as Special Adviser, which was offered to me when I handed over my mandate as Chairman of the Board of Directors, and to leave the company. I have taken this decision in the best interests of France Telecom, a company with which I have consecrated the best part of my professional career.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all employees of France Telecom who have contributed to the development of a healthy, dynamic Group that has a rich future ahead. In this fast-changing environment, I am convinced that the direction that the Group has taken over the past few years is the right one. I deeply regret the suffering and the incomprehension that resulted from this inevitable need for change.

I now hope that the Group will be able to move forward with dignity and confidence, pursuing its development both in France and internationally, under the direction of Stéphane Richard.”