FT TO LAUNCH ARMENIAN VENTURE IN AUTUMN 2009

TeleGeography
Feb 2 2009
DC

France Telecom (Orange) aims to launch its new Armenian operation
in autumn 2009, its CEO Didier Lombard is quoted as saying in an
interview with the Armenia President, Mr. Serzh Sargsyan, on the
margins of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Mr Lombard announced
only scant details of the French firm’s rollout plan, but did say
that he expected the new services would be ‘in demand’.

According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms database, the French
heavyweight was unveiled as the winner of Armenia’s third mobile
operator licence in October 2008, after submitting the highest bid in
the ongoing tender process. The French telco was one of three groups
shortlisted in August that year to participate in an international
tender for the third mobile concession. Orange tendered roughly
EUR51.5 million (USD72 million) for the concession, roughly five times
the state’s EUR10 million minimum asking price. The other bidders,
Tele2 of Sweden and the UK-Irish group Blackrock Communications,
bid EUR45.6 million and EUR31.7 million, respectively.