Orange CEO speaks about Free and the iPhone 5 in an interview

Stéphane Richard, CEO of Orange
speaks in an interview with L'express
icion the hot topics of the beginning of the year afterthe publication of
quarterly figures marked by the arrival of Free Mobileand the loss
net of more than 600,000 subscribers.

But he also addresses the future for the brand and on this occasion evokes
l’iPhone "5"after a meeting withTim
Cook, nevertheless proving to be more loquacious than last year when he had

announced an availability datefor what turned out to be theiPhone 4S.

Here are the takeaways from this interview:

• More than2.3 million customers left Orange in the first
  quarter 2012, including 800,000 for Free Mobile, in parallel the brand
  gained 1.7 million new customers. The Free offer, particularly in the direction
  of its 4.7 million Internet subscribers played a role in this change according to Mr.
  Richard. The operator does not plan any layoffs, counting on departures
  natural"We will adapt without any brutality, without drama or
  layoffs, especially as 30,000 natural departures are planned by
  2020”.

• As a result of the drop in prices, the average bill for an Orange subscriber
  should fall by 10% on average this year (Editor's note: the big drops in
  some being compensated by committed customers or who do not change
  package). For the record, in the balance sheet at the start of the year, the packagesSosh sold only on the Internetat prices lower than
  those of the parent brand made it possible to attract200 000 clients.

• the arrival ofnew smartphonesshould have an impact
  positive on customers. We immediately think ofnew iPhone 2012, and the CEO declares
  "I returned from the United States, where I met Tim Cook, CEO of Apple. We
  will have the iPhone 5, but I cannot reveal the date of its launch in
  France. "

On the same subject:

• You can find ourtableau
  comparison of iPhone plans here

• ask your questions tousers of
  all operators here on our iPhone, iPod touch and iPad forum, a
  dedicated operator area awaits you there.

founder of the site. Computer engineer and Internet specialist where he has held various positions of responsibility, Laurent has been passionate about mobility since the arrival of "PDAs" in the 90s. Journalist for 4 years for the magazine Team Palmtops (Posse Presse) and author of several books on the iPad published by Pearson.