Tuesday 4 October 2011

Orange (telecommunications)


Orange (French pronunciation:  is the brand used by France Télécom for its mobile network operator and Internet service provider subsidiaries. It is the fifth largest telecom operator in the world, with 210 million customers as of 2010update. The brand was created in 1994 for Hutchison Telecom's UK mobile phone network, which was acquired by France Télécom in August 2000. In 2006, the company's ISP operations, previously Wanadoo, were also rebranded Orange. Orange is now the unique commercial façade of almost all France Telecom services. Orange France was incorporated in 2005 and has its headquarters in Arcueil, France.

History

Orange (mobile network operator)

Microtel Communications Ltd. was formed in April 1990 as a consortium comprising Pactel Corporation, British Aerospace, Millicom and French company Matra (British Aerospace soon acquired full control of the company). In 1991 Microtel was awarded a license to develop a mobile network in the UK, and in July 1991 Hutchison Telecommunications (UK) Ltd acquired Microtel from BAe. BAe was paid in Hutchison Telecommunications (UK) Ltd. shares, giving the company a 30% share. Hutchison Whampoa held 65% and Barclays Bank the remaining 5%. Microtel was renamed Orange Personal Communications Services Ltd. in 1994. The Orange brand was created by an internal team at Microtel headed by Chris Moss (Marketing Director) and supported by Martin Keogh, Rob Furness and Ian Pond. The brand consultancy Wolff Olins was charged with designing the brand values and logo and advertising agency WCRS created the Orange slogan "The Future's bright, the Future's Orange" along with the now famous advertising. It was also important to establish it as the colour Orange, which is seen as a strong Feng Shui colour. The Orange network was launched on 28 April 1994.

Orange plc was formed in 1995 as a holding company for the Orange group. France Telecom formed the present company in 2001 after acquiring Orange plc (which had been acquired by Mannesmann AG, itself purchased by Vodafone shortly after, leading Vodafone to divest Orange) and merging its existing mobile operations into the company. The company was initially 100% owned by France Telecom (although there were and still remain minority investors in some of the national operating companies). In 2001 15% was sold in an IPO, but in 2003 the outstanding shares were bought back by France Telecom.

Orange (internet service provider)

Orange operates as an ISP in France, Spain, the United Kingdom, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Romania, Slovakia and Switzerland. France Telecom also operates as an ISP in Poland through its stake in Telekomunikacja Polska, which is now being co-branded as Orange. It is currently the largest ISP in Europe with over ten million subscribers (including those of Telekomunikacja Polska), largely concentrated in France, the UK, Spain and Poland, and was originally known as Wanadoo.

Wanadoo was floated on the stock market on 18 July 2000. In 2000, Wanadoo also took over the major British ISP Freeserve, which had previously been part of the Dixons Group (now Dixons Retail plc). Following the buy-out, Freeserve maintained its own branding for a while before finally changing to the Wanadoo name on 28 April 2004.

However, the name Wanadoo changed to Orange on 1 June 2006 to simplify branding by the common parent company, France Telecom. This merging of companies has created a single brand offering mobile telecommunications and internet services.