Paris, June 25, 2003 - Thierry Breton, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of France
Telecom and Jean-Marc Espalioux, Chairman of the Management Board of Accor, today
signed a partnership agreement calling for the creation of Orange Wi-Fi hotspots at Accor
hotels in France, ranging from Formule 1 to Sofitel.
The agreement follows commitments announced by the two groups in March 2003 to provide
their customers with an innovative, value-added service based on simple and reliable
technology.
The first to benefit from the new Wi-Fi service will be officials and media staying in Paris at
Accor hotels for the 9th IAAF World Championships in Athletics from August 23-31, 2003.
The Accor Orange offer features:
- Integrated services tailored to the needs of customers in the hotel environment,
according to where they are - meeting rooms, guest rooms, as well as public areas
such as the lobby and bar.
- Integrated services tailored to the needs of customers in the hotel environment,
according to where they are - meeting rooms, guest rooms, as well as public areas
such as the lobby and bar.
For example :
- a guest at a Formule 1 hotel will be able to purchase an hour of Internet connection
time for 5 euros, paying online.
- organizers of a seminar at a Sofitel can propose an all-day package Wi-Fi access
offer for five users, costing 40 euros.
- Wi-Fi customers will be able to connect from anywhere in the hotel, depending on
the subscription they purchase.
Launch of the new Wi-Fi service is scheduled for October 2003.
The service will be available at 350 hotels by the end of this year. By the end of 2004 it will
be offered across the entire Accor hotel network in France, totaling nearly 1,300 hotels in
every segment, from 1 to 5* (Formule 1, Etap, Ibis, Suitehotel, Mercure, Novotel, Sofitel).
This agreement leads to an unprecedented Wi-Fi deployment program.
Current trends indicate that the Wi-Fi network deployed by Accor and Orange could attract
up to 5,000 users per day. Studies of Wi-Fi development in France estimate that by 2006
there could be more than 10,000 potential customers daily for the service at Accor hotels.
This offer is the result of an exemplary cooperation among technical, marketing and sales
teams from Orange France and Accor. Their joint efforts have produced a unique, integrated
service that is perfectly tailored to the needs of customers in a hotel setting. Cooperation will
continue with joint marketing and promotion of the new Wi-Fi service.
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