Orange Positioned In The Leaders Quadrant For 2006 Western European Mobile Services Provider Magic Quadrant

Orange today announced it has been positioned in the leaders' quadrant in Gartner Inc.'s Magic Quadrant for Mobile Service Providers, Western Europe, 2006 report (Katja Ruud, Martin Gutberlet, Leif-Olof Wallin — 22 March 2007).

Leaders are selected for the Magic Quadrant based on completeness of vision and ability to execute. According to the report, leaders are mobile service providers whose viability is not in doubt. They have a proven track record in mobile voice and data services for enterprises, and offer wide geographic coverage. They have also shown strong vision and a commitment to invest in this business, which indicates that they are well placed for future success. Their products and services are relatively low-risk, but not necessarily the best ones for every project.

""We believe our position in the leader quadrant confirms the strength and attractiveness of our offer for multinational enterprises,” commented Neil Laidler, Vice President Business Services, Orange UK. “With mobile operations in nine European countries and dedicated services for multinational clients, we have a good foundation. Add to this the fact that we work closely with the enterprise services division of Orange Business Services, a world leader in global voice and data services; are a founding member of the FreeMove Alliance and have a strong relationship with Cingular Wireless; and we're positive we have a compelling proposition for multinational clients.

“The restructuring of our parent company, France Telecom, around the Orange brand and the drawing together of our other subsidiaries gives us the chance to capitalize on many of the remote access and enterprise mobility assets formerly held by Equant. We believe that our position in this report confirms that we're on the right path,” he adds.

Western European mobile providers evaluated in the Magic Quadrant were evaluated on their “ability to execute” and “completeness of vision,” which reflect the following specific criteria:

Ability to Execute. Product/Service, Overall Viability (Business Unit, Financial, Strategy, Organization), Sales Execution/Pricing, Market Responsiveness and Track Record, Marketing Execution, Customer Experience, and Operations.

Completeness of Vision. Market Understanding, Marketing Strategy, Sales Strategy, Offering (Product) Strategy, Business Model, Vertical/Industry Strategy, Innovation and Geographic Strategy.

Editor's Note

The Gartner Magic Quadrant is copyrighted March 15, 2007 by Gartner, Inc., and is reused with permission. The Magic Quadrant is a graphical representation of a marketplace at and for a specific time period. It depicts Gartner's analysis of how certain vendors measure against criteria for that marketplace, as defined by Gartner. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in the Magic Quadrant, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors placed in the “Leaders” quadrant. The Magic Quadrant is intended solely as a research tool, and is not meant to be a specific guide to action. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.