France
All the latest key telecoms and digital infra insight, news and analysis from France.
M&A
Bouygues CEO says SFR review could stretch into 2028
Olivier Roussat appears less confident than his opposite at Orange that the deal will be completed before the end of next year, as originally hoped.
Strategy & Change
Orange bets on MásOrange as Spain’s price war rages
MásOrange CEO Meinard Spenger is confident the business will hold its own in a bruising battle as rivals employ increasingly aggressive tactics.
Network & Infra
US to pay $10bn+ to Eutelsat, SES to clear ‘super band’ 5G/6G spectrum
Massive payout shores up finances for European satellite duo in return for setting aside Upper C-band GEO spectrum and transitioning services, freeing capacity for a 5G/6G ‘super band’ of frequencies in the US.
Network & Infra
American Tower continues streamlining with APAC departure
US wireless infra giant offloads last two outposts in Asia-Pacific as it concentrates resource on riding 5G and edge/AI wave in developed markets.
Network & Infra
Orange to unleash data centre value through €3bn JV
Group plans to bring five existing data centres into 50:50 joint venture with infra investor Morrison.
Interview
From telecoms to national security: Orange DD&S champions dual-use tech with Drone 360 detection
Interview: As Direction Défense & Sécurité celebrates its one-year anniversary, Director Nassima Auvray speaks with TelcoTitans Orangewatch about the Business division’s sovereign counter-drone ecosystem solution for critical infra, and what’s up next…
Partnerships & Alliances
New Spanish resilience regs said to prompt expanded Telefónica-Cellnex tie-up
Operator reportedly extends Cellnex energy backup partnership to cover up to 1,000 additional sites. Deal comes as Spanish telcos face more stringent redundancy requirements from the government, following last year’s major electricity grid outage…
Technology
MásOrange brings Cyan cyber products to three more brands
Spanish operator expands cybersecurity deal with German specialist, extending protection services to three more brands as demand for telco-delivered security services continues to rise.
Financial & Performance
Eutelsat/OneWeb: UK’s £500m LEO satellite bet loses two-thirds of value in six years
As now-parent Eutelsat painfully pivots from geostationary to low Earth orbit infrastructure, the UK’s £342m loss on its controversial OneWeb rescue faces fresh scrutiny. Despite the substantial loss of value, government officials maintain that LEO commitment remains crucial to the nation.
M&A
EC cedes oversight of SFR takeover to French authorities
Iliad’s SFR transaction was a potential sticking point, but the EC has agreed to refer it to France, with discussions already underway with Bouygues Telecom and Orange.
M&A
France’s Scaleway bulks up cloud platform with Qarnot buy
French cloud provider eyes data centre and services expansion through acquisition of Qarnot, having identified potential synergies and alignment on heat recycling as key benefits to the buy.