Free Mobile competitors could easily anticipate

The Chairman of Arcep, auditioned by a Commission of the National Assembly, returned to the entry of Free Mobile telecoms market.

Free Mobile competitors have, in the past months, regularly turned to - regulator Arcep for telecoms - to complain about the conditions enjoyed by the new entrant on the French market of mobile telephony. Arcep which, meanwhile, was very happy to see more competition to interfere in the market, since it benefits directly to the Subscriber. Accused of not sufficiently well assessed the impact of the arrival of a fourth operator on the market, Arcep held to be explained once again by the voice of its president Jean-Ludovic Silicani, at a hearing before the Commission of Economic Affairs of the National Assembly.

Jean-Ludovic Silicani began by recalling an indisputable fact: "everywhere in Europe, we find four fixed/mobile operators." All studies show that the price of the mobile France, was higher than elsewhere. "And the choice of the place to a new entrant was made as early as 2000, when the decision on the distribution of 3 G frequencies".

From there, according to him, nobody can say taking courses. The president of Arcep also does not hesitate to explain that those who complain today, could handle the situation differently. "If they had thought in 2006/2008 to spend a full-MVNO with Free agreement, the issue would not have arisen and they would not be in this situation, perhaps Free have not deployed fourth mobile network." "It is a choice on their part: they did everything to block the development of the full MVNO in France while they were abroad the increasing" he says.

As the price of the licence paid by Free Mobile, competitors believe bradee, yet Jean-Ludovic Silicani presents things flat: "If the conditions were so favourable, if the price was so low, other operators have jumped at the opportunity to be a candidate." "However, despite our efforts, a single operator competed". The price paid for the license is logical, because Free Mobile has a lower volume of frequencies. Not to mention that the new operator arrived very late on its competitors.

Finally, the last difficult question concerns the consequences of the arrival of Free Mobile employment, since its competitors dismiss to restore their margins, and relocate more: "I remember that the sector is facing a trend decline in its numbers, so is somewhat easy to do on the back of Free (...)" For direct employment we are to 1 600 posts deleted via voluntary departures. For indirect jobs, depends on the strategies of operators but 1,500 jobs could be affected (...) Meanwhile, Free have recently created 2,000 jobs including via the launch of two centres of calls in the Paris region. "In all we have 3,000 in losses and 2,000 in gains so the balance is negative 1 000 jobs".

The Samsung Galaxy S3 is available at Free Mobile

The fourth mobile operator, Free Mobile, now offers the Samsung Galaxy S3 in his catalogue of phones.

The last flagship of Android, Galaxy S3 of Samsung smartphones, is officially its entry in the catalogue of phones available for sale on the Free Mobile web site.

The tariff proposed by the troublemaker of telecoms is significantly lower than that requested by other operators or 595 euros naked (it is 597 euros in B & You and 599 euros in Sosh for example). The proposed version is equipped with 16 GB of internal memory available in the colours white and blue.

The Subscriber can pay at one time cash by paying the sum of 595 euros so or choose a formula to credit spread over 23 to 35 months which brings back the tariff respectively to 655 and 685,60 euros still. Nu is therefore particularly interesting for who can release the 595 euros at once, by contrast credit offers are less attractive than in the competition.

Free Mobile: two unions are still critical coverage

The Council of State will have to deal with the complaint of the two unions CFE - CGC and Unsa.

Telecoms CFE - CGC unions and the Unsa come to enter the Council of State to rule definitively on the issue of actual coverage of the Free Mobile network. They had already applied to the telecoms regulator that was oriented to the authority of competition, without success. If the Arcep and the ANFR already validated Free Mobile network coverage which would exceed the 27% of the French population, the two unions strongly criticise the method used, including at the level of the measure of the signal that does not necessarily mean that the network is operational. The two unions declare:

There is therefore to launch an inquiry under article l. 36 - 11 and use a suitable methodology to verify the capacity of the network Free-Mobile to take support calls to its customers and not the mere existence of a signal as it has already been done in previous controls.

For them, this new calculation will help to show that Free Mobile does not respect its commitments and thus the operator can claim roaming on Orange network. The two unions say that Free Mobile can claim this right of roaming since its own network does not cover 25% of the actual population for the voice at any time of the day. The two unions concluded with this sentence: "This is why the unions asked the Council of State of"reject"ARCEP and to oblige it to apply the sanction procedure".

According to Arcep, Free Mobile coverage exceeded the 27% of the French population at the end of February. ANFR (Agency national of frequencies), which challenged these measures at the beginning of March, was also on the ground to conclude that Free Mobile actually covered 30.8% of the population in metropolitan France. However, Orange continues to say that 90% of Free Mobile communications continue to go through its network. The Council of State will have to decide.

Personal mobile TV is dead and buried

The APF aborts the TMP project after five years of battle with broadcast operators.

TMP is definitely stopped. The CSA has indeed removed the allocation of frequencies for the DVB - H standard concerning the personal Mobile television. March 5, 2007, this standard was established in France for broadcast in television (at the Rugby World Cup) in a project led by the CSA.

The Supervisory Board of audiovisual French then opted for TDF society who was in charge of technical as antenna infrastructure deployment and distribution network between television and digital distribution network.

Before the immobilization of TDF and the difficulties of deployment, the APF subsequently asked that an operator is designated to mount an offer of access. Virgin Mobile was the only proposed an alliance with TDF in May 2010, but this project was stopped in January 2011. Following the announcement of Virgin Mobile, TDF also stated that he stopped the costs and to désengageait project.

Sixteen television stations that have an authorization to broadcast on the DVB - H network have not found a new transport operator and eventually asked the CSA to end definitively to the project, with solutions of broadcast programmes via the 3 G for example. The frequencies in question will not be reused for the mobile network, too remote of the GSM standard, UMTS or the LTE. Three blocks of frequencies are therefore abandoned, the VHF - III (174-230 MHz), the UHF - IV and V (470-830 MHz) and L-band (1452-1492 MHz) which are already used by other standards of dissemination such as DVB - T and the T - DAB currently being at stake for the TNT.

Elsewhere in the world, this standard is also abandoned for the 3 G or 4 G to monetize access to digital content much more easily. Unless the B2M (Broadcast Mobile Multimedia) led by TDF can replace the TMP within a few years. In any case, the digital TV on mobile is available that by paying a supplementary package.

Free Mobile could be punished by Arcep

Alternative Mobile has, on behalf of the MVNO, before the Arcep regards wholesale offers Free mobile virtual operators...

The conditions for the entry of Free Mobile in the mobile telephony market have been defined by Arcep - Telecoms Regulator - and negotiated in exchange for commitments specific (and ambitious) to animate the competition. If, in terms of rates applied, Free Mobile has fulfilled its commitments and even a little more than that by planting a beautiful mess (the first results are visible, with an average revenue per user down), this is hardly the case with respect to offers of large virtual operators, the famous MVNO. Thus, Alternative Mobile seized Arcep comes formally to initiate a procedure against Free Mobile for breaches of commitments.

It must be said that the wholesale rates proposed by Free Mobile in the MVNO are such that they do not really to propose offers more interesting than those already placed on the market by the néo-opérateur. Thus, the monthly access subscription is billed at least €2 duty-free, while Free Mobile offers its customers to package to €2 per month TTC. According to Alternative Mobile, this demonstrates that Free Mobile does not take its commitments of animation of the competition, leaving no room for manoeuvre to the MVNO, as explained already here: Free Mobile does stimulate competition or kill the MVNO?

Alternative Mobile welcomes the decision of Arcep to have put in place a procedure and hope that it will go to an end to punish Free Mobile and force it to honour its commitments so that the MVNO who would rely on its network to offer their offers, can do so at competitive rates.

Orange, SFR, Bouygues: Free Mobile will cost them dear

Time of Auditors arrived to three operators who had reason to fear the arrival of Free Mobile on the market.

Following the publication of the latest financial results, France Telecom and the point made by the operator for the modification to the portfolio of clients of Orange our colleagues in les Echos attach to a point on the changes in the sector of mobile telephony trained to this day by the arrival of Free Mobile on the market. Five months after the launch of the new highly competitive commercial offers incoming, "is starting to get an idea of the invoice paid by its competitors" indicate.

France Telecom has thus announced lost a total of mobile client 615.000 on the first quarter of the year, 2.3 million of termination and 1.7 million of recruitment. This represents a decrease of 0.7% over one year customer base. Remains that the operator does not it more recruits with its low-cost Sosh subsidiary and, if this is the case, how it affect its profitability. However, from an economic point of view, France Telecom is reassuring, recalling an asset have to resist Free Mobile: the roaming agreement signed with the néo-opérateur.

An agreement on the 2 G and 3 G very criticized (from a commercial point of view as from a technical point of view), but that, according to Orange, "compensates partially the decline in turnover" in the first quarter. 6 Years, this contract be earned 1 billion euros France Telecom, but as Free Mobile traffic is higher than that forecast does had anticipated it, revenues should ultimately exceed $ 1 billion in just three years. France Telecom has therefore not lost with the arrival of Free Mobile on the market, far from it.

In Bouygues Telecom, it will take on 15 May and the release of the sales in the first quarter to learn more, but the operator already said that its revenues would decrease by about 10% this year. And on 15 February, Free Mobile had apparently already recovered client 134.000 of Bouygues Telecom, which recruits many through its low-cost B & You offer. Bouygues Telecom has recently launched a EUR 300 million per year savings plan, and announced that he would renegotiate some partnerships, including those with the Phone House distribution system. Today, Bouygues Telecom announced the purchase of Darty Telecom, as explained here.

Finally in SFR, resigned as the CEO Frank Esser who refused to lower its prices, and after the acting by Jean-Bernard Lévy, is Michel Combes who becomes CEO. Frank Esser has paid its inability to anticipate the difficulties caused by the arrival of Free Mobile, with the loss estimated at client 208.000 in only 50 days between January and February (all operators combined). The savings plan that provides to SFR is estimated at EUR 500 million, passing by the dismissal of numerous employees and pressure on suppliers to lower prices. SFR already announced sales fell by 12 to 15% this year. The pressure on prices caused by the arrival of Free Mobile that feel .

Free Mobile, the rate for valid Freebox subscribers even after termination

Free Mobile packages dedicated to the Freebox subscribers reduced tariff is valid even after termination.

Free confirmed information concerning which the preferential tariff applied to subscribers Freebox on its mobile packages, namely €0 or €15.99, is valid even after termination.

Thus any subscriber offer ADSL for Free which is tempted to see in another mobile operator if the grass is greener and later decides to resume package with Free Mobile will always be the reduced rate. Until then the termination and renewal to a Free Mobile offer wavered on the normal tariff to €2 or €19.99 for a Freebox non-abonné.

Offering Free Mobile enhances therefore with time even if it was known and knows still some defects of youth which should quickly narrowed to meet the current and future subscribers.

Free Mobile termination: Word of drive

We thank our readers for their testimony on this case. Our doubts of customer account management have steps been confirmed or reversed by the néo-opérateur, but your testimony give us new light...

Following our article on 24 April concerning the problems of termination of automatic lines for cause of unpaid for some Free Mobile customers, we have received many accounts to offset our doubts about the methods used by the néo-opérateur the "good" computer management of its customers. Before going further, please note that we always expect a response on the part of Free Mobile and Iliad on this subject, that despite our reminders remain silent for the time being.

To better understand what is happening from the point of view of a customer, we selected one of the email we received:

"Hello"

I am writing to bring some clarification to article "Free Mobile: termination of office for outstanding?", part I of the cancelled Office and with the subscription to €15.99.

My RIB was poorly made outset (because of a bug in Free failing key RIB starting at 0). I called 3 times to correct the very thing before receiving my SIM card, which affirmed the customer service not being able to do so and that this would be "quickly as possible" via the heading "My account" in the customer area on the Internet. Of course, that was the most time.

I sent them a RIB by mail, thanks to 4 weeks to process. Result, first denied collection... In the aftermath, an advisor called, to tell me that I could resolve the outstanding credit card, and that he could - finally - correctly enter my RIB.

Result: settled outstanding RIB ok, rectified... situation 2 months so far were collected and there was therefore no unpaid, at most a delay of a few days on the 1 month which, let us recall, is paid in advance.

My line but was cut on April 14, as those of many other customers. I immediately called customer service of Free Mobile, who asked me to send a recommended. This was done in the wake. This is almost 2 weeks I look now. I have called numerous times customer service which told me nothing could do, and that the situation will be rectified "soon"...

They give me the impression of being overwhelmed, my number is lost, and I am the reverse of the NRJ Mobile pub: I have a mobile, but not of SIM card. This suits me well, because I'm currently looking for a new job (the end of CSD requires) and my number is volatilized, I used 12 years and which appeared on my CV.

"Thank you Free…"

Even if all clients are not affected by this problem, those that are will have therefore lost everything in the case. Difficult to understand how this can happen, especially as Iliad is not in its first move to test on this sector. The automatic collection of Free ADSL subscriptions are made correctly, regardless of the used RIB.

Free Mobile termination: Word of drive

We thank our readers for their testimony on this case. Our doubts of customer account management have steps been confirmed or reversed by the néo-opérateur, but your testimony give us new light...

Following our article on 24 April concerning the problems of termination of automatic lines for cause of unpaid for some Free Mobile customers, we have received many accounts to offset our doubts about the methods used by the néo-opérateur the "good" computer management of its customers. Before going further, please note that we always expect a response on the part of Free Mobile and Iliad on this subject, that despite our reminders remain silent for the time being.

To better understand what is happening from the point of view of a customer, we selected one of the email we received:

"Hello"

I am writing to bring some clarification to article "Free Mobile: termination of office for outstanding?", part I of the cancelled Office and with the subscription to €15.99.

My RIB was poorly made outset (because of a bug in Free failing key RIB starting at 0). I called 3 times to correct the very thing before receiving my SIM card, which affirmed the customer service not being able to do so and that this would be "quickly as possible" via the heading "My account" in the customer area on the Internet. Of course, that was the most time.

I sent them a RIB by mail, thanks to 4 weeks to process. Result, first denied collection... In the aftermath, an advisor called, to tell me that I could resolve the outstanding credit card, and that he could - finally - correctly enter my RIB.

Result: settled outstanding RIB ok, rectified... situation 2 months so far were collected and there was therefore no unpaid, at most a delay of a few days on the 1 month which, let us recall, is paid in advance.

My line but was cut on April 14, as those of many other customers. I immediately called customer service of Free Mobile, who asked me to send a recommended. This was done in the wake. This is almost 2 weeks I look now. I have called numerous times customer service which told me nothing could do, and that the situation will be rectified "soon"...

They give me the impression of being overwhelmed, my number is lost, and I am the reverse of the NRJ Mobile pub: I have a mobile, but not of SIM card. This suits me well, because I'm currently looking for a new job (the end of CSD requires) and my number is volatilized, I used 12 years and which appeared on my CV.

"Thank you Free…"

Even if all clients are not affected by this problem, those that are will have therefore lost everything in the case. Difficult to understand how this can happen, especially as Iliad is not in its first move to test on this sector. The automatic collection of Free ADSL subscriptions are made correctly, regardless of the used RIB.