LONDON: Virgin the mobile network operator is looking to establish the Virgin mobile brand in France repeating its successful business model. The operator is currently in talks with Carphone Warehouse, Europe’s biggest mobile phone retailer, whose Brittany-based regional mobile service Omer could be used for the launch.
Virgin is owned by the UK entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson who regards the Charles Dunstone-owned Carphone as the right business partner considering France is the second biggest market after Britain for the latter. Carphone has more than 300 stores in France which will serve as a ready distribution platform for the Virgin brand.
The group aims to launch its brand through these Carphone stores as well as a chain of Virgin Megastores.
In France the market currently has only three players Orange, Buoygues and SRF. The country has a lower mobile penetration (70 percent) than that in the UK (over 90 percent). European Union regulators have called for more mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) like Virgin to be set up in France which would help control the prices of mobile phone services. Virgin will use the Orange network to become the country’s fourth mobile operator.
The joint venture will be on a 50-50 basis, with Carphone on one side and Virgin
Mobile and Virgin Management the investment firm on the other. The shareholding split between the Virgin companies are yet to be decided. The invest firm’s participation was considered essential as Virgin does not have the rights to launch its brand in France.
The French launch is slated for a tentative date in the first half of next year.
In the UK, Virgin is an MVNO (a telecoms company that does not have its own network but leases airtime from other operators) and uses the T-Mobile network. The no-frills brand operates also in Australia, Canada and in the US where the operator has a tie-up with Sprint and is hugely successful.
Posted
on : Mon, 24 Oct 2005 14:15 GMT | Business News
By : Rob Davis
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