Orange S.A. formerly the French government communications agency and then part of France Telecom, is a major multinational telecommunications corporation. The French government is by far the largest single shareholder and has significant control over the company.Orange is quite conscious of the issue of operating in disputed territories, and in fact, it cancelled its brand licensing agreement with an Israeli provider in 2016, in part to avoid providing service to the West Bank.
In 2010, Orange S.A. acquired 40 percent of Méditel, the second-largest mobile phone operator in Morocco, and by 2016 increased its share in the company to 49 percent.Méditel is active throughout Morocco. It is also active in Western Sahara, where it has extensive mobile infrastructure, maintaining extremely high network performance, and service stations. In December 2016, Orange rebranded Méditel as Orange Maroc,fully folding it into the Orange brand.
1.1. Orange S.A. (Country of Origin: France | Stock Exchange Listings: Euronext Paris, NYSE, Borsa Italiana | Traded as: ORA, ORAN | Government Affiliation: Government of France Holds 13.4 Percent of Shares and Almost 30 Percent of Voting Rights[1] | Annual Revenue: ~$45 Billion)
Orange S.A., formerly the French government communications agency and then part of France Telecom,[2] is a major multinational telecommunications corporation. The French government is by far the largest single shareholder and has significant control over the company.[3] Orange is quite conscious of the issue of operating in disputed territories, and in fact, it cancelled its brand licensing agreement with an Israeli provider in 2016, in part to avoid providing service to the West Bank.
In 2010, Orange S.A. acquired 40 percent of Méditel, the second-largest mobile phone operator in Morocco, and by 2016 increased its share in the company to 49 percent.[4] Méditel is active throughout Morocco. It is also active in Western Sahara, where it has extensive mobile infrastructure,[5] maintaining extremely high network performance, and service stations. In December 2016, Orange rebranded Méditel as Orange Maroc,[6] fully folding it into the Orange brand.
[1] TeleGeography, “French Government Doubles Voting Rights in Orange,” April 11, 2016, https://www.telegeography.com/products/commsupdate/articles/2016/04/11/french-government-doubles-voting-rights-in-orange/.
[2] Financial Times, “France Telecom Changes Name to Orange,” May 29, 2013,
https://www.ft.com/content/8f0926fe-c7b9-11e2-9c52-00144feab7de.
[3] Financial Times, “Orange CEO Urges Government to Stop Meddling in Telecoms Sector,” June 23, 2015, https://www.ft.com/content/ac394068-18c7-11e5-a130-2e7db721f996; see also n. 1.
[4] Orange Press Release, “Orange increases its interest in the Moroccan operator Méditel with the acquisition of an additional 9% of its capital,” July 24, 2015, https://www.orange.com/en/Press-Room/press-releases-2017/press-releases-2015/Orange-increases-its-interest-in-the-Moroccan-operator-Meditel-with-the-acquisition-of-an-dditional-9-of-its-capital
[5] L’Economiste, “Quality of Telecom Networks: List of Operators,” January 30, 2015, http://www.leconomiste.com/article/965776-qualite-des-reseaux-telecomsle-palmares-des-operateurs.
[6] Orange Press Release, “Meditel Becomes Orange in Morocco,” December 8, 2016, https://www.orange.com/en/Press-Room/press-releases-2017/press-releases-2016/Meditel-becomes-Orange-in-Morocco.
