Never two without three. After having already twice extended Free’s historic roaming on Orange’s 2G/3G networks until December 31 of this year, the two operators would like to repeat the experience, this time until 2025, i.e. on the official date set by Orange for the extinction of its 2G network.
Arcep said on Wednesday that it received in July a new draft amendment to the contract binding the two operators to extend their roaming contract for an additional three years, i.e. until December 31, 2025. According to the study, this new amendment would allow Free to use Orange’s 2G and 3G network to supply its customers – subject to maximum speeds that have been reduced in recent years.
If the extension of roaming linking the two operators has long been the subject of criticism from SFR, Bouygues Telecom and alternative operators, Free and Orange highlight that the maximum speeds available via this roaming will always be limited to 384 kbit / s and that a particular tariff device will be part of it to “encourage the reduction in the number of Free customers using the 2G/3G Network of Orange”. The two operators also highlight that this amendment will last until the official extinction of the 2G network in France, set for the end of 2025.
Win-win agreement for Orange and Free
So many arguments that should probably not calm their competitors, who see it as a form of unfair competition.
Already in February 2020, during a previous renewal of roaming linking Free to Orange, the management of Bouygues Telecom recalled that “roaming had been designed from the outset as a transitional measure, with the sole objective of allowing the newcomer to compensate for its late entry into the market”. However, the latter then argued that “Free can no longer be described as a new entrant in the mobile telephony market” and “has a network broadly comparable to that of its competitors, therefore quite sufficient to allow it to compete vigorously” in the mobile market.
Still, roaming is very useful for Free, which can thus concentrate its infrastructure investments on other major projects, but also for Orange, which sees this regular cash flow favorably.