France telecome

France Télécom S.A. (Euronext: FTE, NYSE: FTE) is the main telecommunications company in France, the third-largest in Europe and one of the largest in the world. It currently employs about 180,000 people (half outside of France) and has 192.7 million customers worldwide (2010). In 2008 the group had revenue of €53.5 billion. Its head office is in Place d'Alleray in the 15th arrondissement ofParis, and the current CEO is Stéphane Richard.
History
Up to 1988, France Télécom was known as the Direction Générale des Télécommunications, a division of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. It became autonomous in 1990. It was privatized by Lionel Jospin's Plural Left government starting on January 1, 1998. The French government, both directly and through its holding company ERAP,continues to hold a stake of almost 27% in the firm. In addition, the government Conseil of Ministers names the CEO. In 1982 Telecom introduced Minitel, for its customers to for the first time to perform online ordering.

Recent acquisitions and divestitures
In summer 2003, France Télécom sold a 48% shareholding in Telecom Argentina, which it had jointly run with Telecom Italia, to the ArgentinianWertheinfamily. FT now holds only 2% of the firm. In 2003 FT sold CTE El Salvador.
In August 2005, FT acquired a 77% ownership in the Spanish mobile phone company Amena, rebranding it Orange España.
In December 2006, France Télécom announced the acquisition of DIWAN and SILICOMP specialized on the Customer Critical Application (CCA) and Security for enterprises.
In November 2007, FT announcedit had acquired a bid to secure 51% of Telkom Kenya's shares from the Government of Kenya, but will have to bring about 11% of shares back out onto the market three years following the deal.
In June 2008, the firm abandoned a €27 billion bid for Swedish operator TeliaSonera after the two companies failed to agree terms.
On September 8, 2009, Orange and T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom announcedthey were in advanced talks to merge their UK operations to create the largest mobile operator with 37% of the market. It is unclear the future of either brand when such deal is completed in November.[5]
In September 2010, FT announced it had acquired 40% of Meditel shares, a mobile operator from Morocco.

France Télécom S.A.


Type
Société Anonyme (Euronext:FTE, NYSE: FTE)

IndustryTelecommunications

Founded 1988 (spun off from governmental control)
Headquarters 15th arrondissement, Paris,France

Area served Worldwide
Key people Didier Lombard (Chairman), Stéphane Richard (CEO)

Products
Fixed line and mobile telephony, internet, digital television, IT services

Revenue
€45.94 billion (2009)[1]

Operating income
€7.859 billion (2009)[1]

Profit
€2.997billion (2009)[1]

Total assets
€92.04 billion (2009)[1]

Total equity
€28.75 billion (2009)[1]

Employees
167,150 (FTE, 2009)[1]

Subsidiaries
Orange
Everything Everywhere (UK) (50% Stake)

Website
www.francetelecom.com

Subsidiaries

France Télécom is a communications access provider offering customers access through multiple platforms. The four key platforms France Télécomoperates are:
1. fixed line telephone, mainly in France and Poland.
2. broadband access.
3. mobile phone telephony.
4. most recently, IPTV, though currently only in France and Spain, with MaLigne TV, now known as Orange TV.
France Télécom has already begun merging the different internal divisions managing each platform and they now almost all operate under the Orange brand.[6]
France Télécom ispresent in the US through its Equant enterprise services and its venture capital arm, Innovacom as well as two R&D labs: one in Bostonand the other in South San Francisco, California.

penTransit is France Télécom's backbone network. It covers Europe, the United States, Japan, Hong Kong, and loops back to Paris.
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