Bouygues Telecom
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Telecommunications |
| Founded | 4 October 1994(company foundation) 30 May 1996(launch of mobile services) |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | France |
Key people | Benoît Torloting (CEO) Richard Viel (Chairmanof the Board of Directors) |
| Services | Mobile network operatorandInternet service provider |
| Revenue | 6.058 billion euros (2019) |
| 379 million euros (2019) | |
| Owner | Bouygues(90.53%) JCDecaux(9.47%) |
Number of employees | 8,937 (as of 2019) |
| Parent | Bouygues |
| Website | bouyguestelecom |
Bouygues Telecom S.A.(French pronunciation:[bwiɡtelekɔm]) is a Frenchmobile phone,Internet service providerandIPTVcompany, part of theBouyguesgroup. It is the third oldest mobile network operator in France, afterOrangeandSFR,and beforeFree Mobile,and provides2GGSM,3GUMTS,4GLTEand5GNRservices. Its headquarters, designed byArquitectonicaand opened in 2011, is located at the border ofParisandIssy-les-Moulineauxnear theRiver Seine.[1]
History
[edit]
Bouygues Telecom was authorised by the French government to build and operate France's thirdGSMmobile phone network on 4 December 1994, and commercially launched its network on 30 May 1996. To compensate for its initial weaker coverage in comparison to Orange and SFR, Bouygues Telecom developed several innovations:
- heavy use of the 1800 MHz frequency band, which is more efficient in urban areas;
- the marketing of the first combo packages in May 1996;
- the launch of France's firstSMSservice in 1996, initially only between its subscribers, not billed until 1997;
- a free call recording function included in all packages, from 15 January 1997;
- the launch ofcaller IDat the end of 1997, followed a few months later by its competitors;
- the launch of the "Millenium" package in November 1999, the first in France to offer unlimited calls during the weekend;
- the launch of the "Spot" formula in March 2000, which offers several minutes of free talktime in exchange for advertising messages during communication; and
- the launch of France's first unlimited evening calling plan to all operators in 2006[2]
By 2001, Bouygues Telecom's market share reached approximately 17%. In that same year, Bouygues Telecom negotiated withNTT DoCoMoregarding a potential partnership and the right to offer the latter'si-modemobile internetservice, which ultimately did not materialise.
In March 2005, the firstDVB-Htrials in France were carried out by Bouygues Telecom in cooperation with Orange andTPS.Bouygues Telecom subsequently launchedEDGEon its mobile network in May 2005.
On 25 May 2009, Bouygues Telecom launched France's first convergedquadruple playoffer called "ideo", using a combined Internetmodemandset-top boxcalledBbox.This idea was subsequently quickly copied by Orange, SFR and Free Mobile. On 22 October 2010, the Bbox offer was expanded to includefibre Internetin cooperation withNumericable.
On 18 July 2011, Bouygues Telecom launched its lower-costflanker brandcalledB&YOU,offering postpaid plans online without fixed contracts.[3]
In January 2016, Bouygues Telecom were subject to negotiations regarding an acquisition from mobile carrierOrange,[4]which did not progress.[5]
In June 2020, Bouygues Telecom acquiredEuro-Information Telecom,theMVNEforNRJ Mobile,Auchan Telecom,Cdiscount Mobile,CIC MobileandCrédit Mutuel Mobile,and subsequently renamed the latter asBouygues Telecom Business – Distributionin early-2021.[6][7]
Legal issues
[edit]Antitrust litigation
[edit]Along with Orange and SFR, Bouygues Telecom was, in 2005, found by theAutorité de la concurrence(the French competition body) to have acted against the best interests of consumers and the economy by sharing confidential information between 1997 and 2003. The three companies were collectively fined €535 million in total. In November 2007, Bouygues Telecom went to court seeking to have the ruling annulled.
Court order for equipment removal
[edit]In February 2009, the company was ordered to take down amobile phone mastdue to uncertainty about its effect on health. Residents in the communeCharbonnièresin theRhônedepartment had sued the company claiming adversehealth effectsfrom the radiation emitted by the 19 meter tall antenna.[8]The milestone ruling by theVersailles Court of Appealreversed theburden of proofwhich is usual in such cases by emphasizing the extreme divergence between different countries in assessing safe limits for such radiation. The court stated that, "Considering that, while the reality of the risk remains hypothetical, it becomes clear from reading the contributions and scientific publications produced in debate and the divergent legislative positions taken in various countries, that uncertainty over the harmlessness of exposure to the waves emitted by relay antennas persists and can be considered serious and reasonable".[9]
Bicycle racing team
[edit]They sponsored the bicycle racing teamBbox Bouygues Telecomfrom 2005 to 2010.
References
[edit]- ^"Bouygues TeleCom Headquarters by Arquitectonica".10 February 2015.
- ^Acheter pour un monde meilleur: Le guide du client responsable.Eyrolles. 2007.ISBN9782212539639.
- ^"Le 18 juillet, Bouygues Telecom lance la téléphonie mobile 2.0"[18 July, Bouygues telecom launches mobile telephony 2.0](PDF)(Press release) (in French).Bouygues.com.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2015-02-06 – viaWayback Machine.
- ^Scott, Mark (2016-01-05)."Orange in Talks to Acquire Bouygues Telecom".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved2016-02-01.
- ^Thomson, Adam (1 April 2016)."Orange and Bouygues merger talks collapse".Financial Times.Retrieved29 August2017.
- ^"Bouygues Telecom rachète EI Telecom, le numéro 5 du mobile en France".BFM Business.
- ^"Bouygues Telecom acquiert plusieurs MVNO d'un coup (NRJ Mobile, Auchan Telecom…) 🆕".iGeneration.4 January 2021.
- ^Barstad, Stine (18 February 2009)."Kunne ikke bevise at strålingen var ufarlig".Aftenposten(in Norwegian). Archived fromthe originalon 20 February 2009.Retrieved25 May2009.
- ^Residents living next to a phone mast vs. the mobile phone company Bouygues Telecom(Versailles Court of Appeal 4 February 2009),Text.
External links
[edit]
- (in French)Official website
- (in English)Official Website for International Visitors
