Undid revision 1229178285by2405:201:8005:6846:39F0:D128:A535:71D7 (talk) Free is owned by Iliad not Jio
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{{Short description|French telecommunications company}} |
{{Short description|French telecommunications company}} |
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{{ |
{{Promotional tone|date=January 2024}} |
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{{Infobox company |
{{Infobox company |
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| name = Free |
| name = Free S.A.S. |
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| logo = |
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| logo_size = |
| logo_size = |
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| type = [[Société par actions simplifiée| |
| type = [[Société par actions simplifiée|S.A.S.]] |
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| genre = |
| genre = |
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| foundation = {{ |
| foundation = {{Start date and age|df=yes|1999|04|26}} |
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| founder = [[Xavier Niel]] |
| founder = [[Xavier Niel]] |
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| location_city = Paris |
| location_city = [[Paris]] |
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| location_country = France |
| location_country = France |
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| location = |
| location = |
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| locations = |
| locations = |
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| area_served = France |
| area_served = [[France]] |
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| key_people = [[Xavier Niel]] |
| key_people = {{Unbulleted list |
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|[[Xavier Niel]] |
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|Maxime Lombardini |
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|Rani Assaf |
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|Antoine Levavasseur |
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|Thomas Reynaud |
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}} |
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| industry = [[Telecommunication]]s |
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| industry = [[Telecommunications industry|Telecommunications]] |
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| products = [[Freebox]], Freebox TV |
| products = [[Freebox]], [[Freebox TV]] |
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* 1999 : [[56k modem|Voiceband]] |
* 1999 : [[56k modem|Voiceband]] |
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* 2002 : [[ |
* 2002 : [[ADSL]] |
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* 2004 : [[ |
* 2004 : [[ADSL2+]] |
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* 2007 : [[ |
* 2007 : [[FTTH]] |
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| services = [[Internet service |
| services = [[Internet service|Fixed-line Internet services]], [[IPTV|IP television]], [[Fixed-line telephony|fixed-line]] and [[mobile telephony]], [[Technological convergence|quadruple play]], [[network service]]s |
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* 1999 : [[Internet |
* 1999 : [[Internet Service Provider|Internet]] |
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* 2003 : [[ |
* 2003 : [[VoIP]], [[IPTV]] |
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* 2006 : [[Mobile VoIP]] |
* 2006 : [[Mobile VoIP]] |
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* 2012 : Mobile telephony |
* 2012 : [[Mobile telephony]] |
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| key-dates = |
| key-dates = |
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| revenue = |
| revenue = |
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| operating_income = |
| operating_income = |
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| net_income = |
| net_income = |
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| owner = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] |
| owner = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] (100%) |
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| num_employees = 5665 |
| num_employees = 5665 |
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| parent = |
| parent = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] |
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| divisions = |
| divisions = |
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| subsid = [[Free Mobile]] (100%)<br />[[Free Infrastructure]] (100%) |
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| subsid = <br />Alice ADSL |
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| footnotes = |
| footnotes = |
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| intl = |
| intl = |
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}} |
}} |
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'''Free''' is a French telecommunications company, subsidiary of [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] that provides voice, video, data, and Internet telecommunications to consumers in France. Its head office is in the [[8th arrondissement of Paris|8th arrondissement]] of [[Paris]] and it is the second-largest [[Internet |
'''Free [[Société par actions simplifiée|S.A.S.]]''' is a French [[telecommunications company]], [[subsidiary]] of [[Iliad (company)|Iliad S.A.]] that provides voice, video, data, and [[Internet]] [[telecommunications]] to consumers in France. Its head office is in the [[8th arrondissement of Paris|8th arrondissement]] of [[Paris]] and it is the second-largest [[Internet Service Provider|ISP]] in France. |
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Free provides ISP services in France<ref name="businessweek-vive-la-high-speed">{{cite web| title= Vive la High-Speed Internet | url= http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2007/gb20070718_387052.htm | date=18 July 2007 | access-date=2009-03-12 }}</ref><ref name="gigaom2009-03-06"/> and in the 30 [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]] countries.<ref name="OECD-36546318">{{Cite press release | title= Multiple Play: Pricing and Policy Trends | url= http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/47/32/36546318.pdf | publisher = [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]] | date=25 April 2006 | access-date=2009-03-12 }}</ref> It was the first company to offer a "[[Triple play (telecommunications)|triple play]]" service in France<ref name="CP_Free_190902">{{Cite press release | title= Free launches unlimited broadband Internet at dial-up prices | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2002/CP_Free_190902.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 19 September 2002 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131205/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2002/CP_Free_190902.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
Free provides ISP services in France<ref name="businessweek-vive-la-high-speed">{{cite web| title= Vive la High-Speed Internet | url= http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2007/gb20070718_387052.htm | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071203064106/http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2007/gb20070718_387052.htm | url-status= dead | archive-date= 3 December 2007 | date=18 July 2007 | access-date=2009-03-12 }}</ref><ref name="gigaom2009-03-06">{{cite web| title= In Europe, VoIP Grows & Grows | url= http://gigaom.com/2009/03/06/in-europe-voip-grows-grows/ | date=6 March 2009 | access-date=2008-02-17 }}</ref> and in the 30 [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]] countries.<ref name="OECD-36546318">{{Cite press release | title= Multiple Play: Pricing and Policy Trends | url= http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/47/32/36546318.pdf | publisher = [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]] | date=25 April 2006 | access-date=2009-03-12 }}</ref> It was the first company to offer a "[[Triple play (telecommunications)|triple play]]" service in [[France]]<ref name="CP_Free_190902">{{Cite press release | title= Free launches unlimited broadband Internet at dial-up prices | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2002/CP_Free_190902.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 19 September 2002 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131205/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2002/CP_Free_190902.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="cp_freeboxtel_310703">{{Cite press release | title= Free introduces free telephone calls | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2003/cp_freeboxtel_310703.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 31 July 2003 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018225908/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2003/cp_freeboxtel_310703.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="CP_Free_271103">{{Cite press release | title= Free launches digital television | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2003/CP_Free_271103.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 27 November 2003 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018225927/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2003/CP_Free_271103.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> through its self-produced singular [[Freebox]] [[set-top box]], claiming to have invented the ''box'' marketing concept in France in reference to all the other French ISPs who thereafter released "triple play" [[modem]]s named to include the [[anglicism]] ''box'' as a suffix. These ''boxes'' provide comprehensive telecommunication services such as [[Broadband|high-speed Internet]], [[telephone]] and [[digital television]] packages, leading Free to become the world's number one IPTV provider<ref name="fierceiptv-top-european-iptv"/> offering almost systematically IPTV to subscribers and optimizing it to be available on most landlines.<ref name="businessweek-iliad-exploits">{{cite web | title=The Telecom Exploits of Iliad | url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_49/b3962071.htm | date=5 December 2005 | access-date=2008-11-30 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060430035223/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_49/b3962071.htm | archive-date=30 April 2006 }}</ref><ref name="gigaom2007-12-21"/> |
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Developing its own 3G and 4G networks, Free Mobile was launched in 2012 and became the fourth mobile network operator in France. |
Developing its own 3G and 4G networks, Free Mobile was launched in 2012 and became the fourth mobile network operator in France. |
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{{See also|Dial-up internet access}} |
{{See also|Dial-up internet access}} |
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Free was the third ISP in France to offer [[Internet]] access without a subscription or a surcharged phone number, on 26 April 1999.<ref name="jdnAvril1999">{{cite web| title= Internet gratuit : Free, un indépendant sur le marché de la fourniture d'accès | url= http://www.journaldunet.com/99avril/990427free.shtml | date=27 April 1999 | access-date=2008-03-20 | language=fr}}</ref> Unlike its predecessors in the niche of [[Free ISP|access without subscription]] ([[World Online]] on 1999-04-01 and {{Interlanguage link |
Free was the third ISP in France to offer [[Internet]] access without a subscription or a surcharged phone number, on 26 April 1999.<ref name="jdnAvril1999">{{cite web| title= Internet gratuit : Free, un indépendant sur le marché de la fourniture d'accès | url= http://www.journaldunet.com/99avril/990427free.shtml | date=27 April 1999 | access-date=2008-03-20 | language=fr}}</ref> Unlike its predecessors in the niche of [[Free ISP|access without subscription]] ([[World Online]] on 1999-04-01 and {{Interlanguage link|Freesurf|fr}} on 1999-04-19), Free's offer was not restricted in time or number of subscribers. |
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In 2002, Free was the first [[Internet service provider|ISP]] to provide a [[56k modem|V.92]] connection.<ref name="CP_Free_270202">{{Cite press release | title= Free, accès en V92 | url= http://www.iliad.fr/presse/2002/CP_Free_270202.pdf | publisher = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date=27 February 2002 | access-date=2008-02-10 | language=fr}}</ref> |
In 2002, Free was the first [[Internet service provider|ISP]] to provide a [[56k modem|V.92]] connection.<ref name="CP_Free_270202">{{Cite press release | title= Free, accès en V92 | url= http://www.iliad.fr/presse/2002/CP_Free_270202.pdf | publisher = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date=27 February 2002 | access-date=2008-02-10 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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|128 kbit/s |
|128 kbit/s |
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|2004-07-27<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free, 2 Mbit/s minimum sur toute la France | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/cp_Free_270704.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 27 July 2004 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182004/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/cp_Free_270704.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
|2004-07-27<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free, 2 Mbit/s minimum sur toute la France | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/cp_Free_270704.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 27 July 2004 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182004/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/cp_Free_270704.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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|[[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line|ADSL]] |
|[[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line|ADSL]] |
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|2048 kbit/s |
|2048 kbit/s |
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|1 Mbit/s |
|1 Mbit/s |
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|2008-03-20<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free offers up to 22 Mbps for the same price (29.99 euros a month) in non-unbundled areas | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_200308_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 20 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-20 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127114916/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_200308_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|2008-03-20<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free offers up to 22 Mbps for the same price (29.99 euros a month) in non-unbundled areas | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_200308_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 20 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-20 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127114916/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_200308_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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|[[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
|[[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
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|22 Mbit/s |
|22 Mbit/s |
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{{See also|Local-loop unbundling}} |
{{See also|Local-loop unbundling}} |
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Unbundling, in France, refers to the obligation for the incumbent carrier [[France Telecom]] to lease the [[ |
Unbundling, in France, refers to the obligation for the incumbent carrier [[France Telecom]] to lease the [[local loop]], because it is a [[natural monopoly]]. Although the unbundling process was intended to start by 2000, the actual unbundling process actually started at the end of 2002, after a long conflict between the French regulation authority [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] and the non-cooperative incumbent.<ref name="arcep-degroupage">{{cite web| title= Le dégroupage de la boucle locale | url= http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=8649 | date=17 September 2008 | access-date=2008-11-30 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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Free has to pay a rental fee of €9 per month and per subscriber to the incumbent for the [[ |
Free has to pay a rental fee of €9 per month and per subscriber to the incumbent for the [[twisted pair]] of [[copper]] between the area [[Telephone exchange|central office]] and the [[Demarcation point|subscriber premises]].<ref name="Conference_MS_201108">{{Cite press release | title= Barcelona – TMT Conference Results and Strategy Presentation | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/Conference_MS_201108.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 21 November 2008 | access-date= 2009-01-04 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081209102055/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/Conference_MS_201108.pdf | archive-date= 9 December 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> Although more expensive than the real cost of €7.63,<ref name="ARCEP_20_Janvier">{{cite web | title= Actualité / Les titres de la presse du mardi 20 janvier 2009 | url= http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=9912 | publisher= [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] | language= fr | access-date= 21 January 2009 | archive-date= 20 July 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110720205547/http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=9912 | url-status= dead }}</ref> this solution is still far more profitable than the bundled option. |
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Since January 2003, a ''Freenaut'' has maintained an unofficial website, showing figures and graphics about Free unbundled network deployment (Free Unbundling).<ref>[http://francois04.free.fr francois04.free.fr] {{in lang|fr}}</ref> Another ''Freenaut'' website has provided network status monitoring maps Unbundling status and location<ref>[http://www.frimousse.org frimousse.org] {{in lang|fr}}</ref> since the end of 2003. These initiatives are made possible thanks to the transparency of Free's network: their equipment replies to [[Ping (networking utility)|ping]] and has a meaningful [[Reverse DNS lookup|reverse DNS]]. |
Since January 2003, a ''Freenaut'' has maintained an unofficial website, showing figures and graphics about Free unbundled network deployment (Free Unbundling).<ref>[http://francois04.free.fr francois04.free.fr] {{in lang|fr}}</ref> Another ''Freenaut'' website has provided network status monitoring maps Unbundling status and location<ref>[http://www.frimousse.org frimousse.org] {{in lang|fr}}</ref> since the end of 2003. These initiatives are made possible thanks to the transparency of Free's network: their equipment replies to [[Ping (networking utility)|ping]] and has a meaningful [[Reverse DNS lookup|reverse DNS]]. |
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|2006-07-26<ref name="CP_260706_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free is increasing its Internet bandwidth for unbundled Freebox subscribers, offering speeds up to 28 Mbit/s | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_260706_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 26 July 2006 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131526/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_260706_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
|2006-07-26<ref name="CP_260706_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free is increasing its Internet bandwidth for unbundled Freebox subscribers, offering speeds up to 28 Mbit/s | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_260706_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 26 July 2006 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131526/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_260706_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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* [[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
* [[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
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|1 Mbit/s |
|1 Mbit/s |
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|2007-06-21<ref name="Cp_210607_DsSafe_en">{{Cite press release | title= Freebox: New Broadband Software is Optimizing the Quality of Triple Play Services | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_210607_DsSafe_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 21 June 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-23 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182612/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_210607_DsSafe_en.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
|2007-06-21<ref name="Cp_210607_DsSafe_en">{{Cite press release | title= Freebox: New Broadband Software is Optimizing the Quality of Triple Play Services | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_210607_DsSafe_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 21 June 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-23 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182612/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_210607_DsSafe_en.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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* [[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
* [[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line 2 Plus|ADSL2+]] |
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|100 Mbit/s |
|100 Mbit/s |
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|50 Mbit/s |
|50 Mbit/s |
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|Inauguration of [[Valenciennes]] FTTH network<ref name="CP_041209_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free unveiled today its FTTH (Fibre To The Home) network in Valenciennes, France | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_041209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 4 December 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100215023713/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_041209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 15 February 2010 | url-status= dead |
|Inauguration of [[Valenciennes]] FTTH network<ref name="CP_041209_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free unveiled today its FTTH (Fibre To The Home) network in Valenciennes, France | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_041209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 4 December 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100215023713/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_041209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 15 February 2010 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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On 11 November 2006, Free announced the deployment of a new [[fiber to the home]] (FTTH) network for its subscribers.<ref name="CP_11092006_cp2_eng">{{Cite press release | title= As of the 1st half 2007, Free will market a very high speed optical fibre service for 29.99€/month | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_11092006_cp2_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 September 2006 | access-date= 2008-02-17 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131802/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_11092006_cp2_eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
On 11 November 2006, Free announced the deployment of a new [[fiber to the home]] (FTTH) network for its subscribers.<ref name="CP_11092006_cp2_eng">{{Cite press release | title= As of the 1st half 2007, Free will market a very high speed optical fibre service for 29.99€/month | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_11092006_cp2_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 September 2006 | access-date= 2008-02-17 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018131802/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_11092006_cp2_eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> The initial plan's goal is to cover Paris as well as some towns in the Paris suburbs and selected neighborhoods in other French cities by 2012. By December 2007, the work was 30% finished, and the remaining work was progressing "at a furious pace".<ref name="gigaom2007-12-21">{{cite web| title= Xavier Niel, France's Broadband Maverick | url= http://gigaom.com/2007/12/21/xavier-niel-free-fr/ | date=21 December 2007 | access-date=2008-02-17 }}</ref> |
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On 31 August 2007, Free updated the offer with more details. Download bandwidth shall be 100 |
On 31 August 2007, Free updated the offer with more details. Download bandwidth shall be 100 Mbit/s and TV services shall be available for two televisions, at the same price of €29.99/month.<ref name="CP_310807_FTTH_eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free's FTTH Offer: Internet Access at a Speed of 100 Mbp/s, Telephony and TV Services Available on 2 Televisions for 29.99€/month | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_310807_FTTH_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 31 August 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-17 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124842/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_310807_FTTH_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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Free has developed its own fiber network technology, called [[Iliad Point To Point|Iliad P2P]], based on [[Ethernet in the First Mile]] and having a [[Point-to-point (telecommunications)|point to point (P2P)]] [[Network topology|topology]].<ref name="zdnet2007-10-31">{{cite web| title= Pourquoi Free peine à déployer son réseau de fibre optique | url= http://www.zdnet.fr/actualites/internet/0,39020774,39375064,00.htm | date=31 October 2007 | access-date=2008-02-17 | language=fr}}</ref> High curvature optic fibers are manufactured by the Dutch company [[Draka Holding|Draka]].<ref name="silicon2008-06-20">{{cite web | title= Rencontre avec Draka, le fibreur de Free | url= http://www.silicon.fr/fr/news/2008/06/20/rencontre_avec_draka_le_fibreur_de_free | date= 20 June 2008 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080629061246/http://www.silicon.fr/fr/news/2008/06/20/rencontre_avec_draka_le_fibreur_de_free | archive-date= 29 June 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="reseauxtelecoms2008-06-30">{{cite web| title= La fibre optique se plie aux exigences parisiennes de Free | url= http://www.reseaux-telecoms.net/actualites/lire-la-fibre-optique-se-plie-aux-exigences-parisiennes-de-free-18444.html | date=30 June 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 | language=fr}}</ref> |
Free has developed its own fiber network technology, called [[Iliad Point To Point|Iliad P2P]], based on [[Ethernet in the First Mile]] and having a [[Point-to-point (telecommunications)|point to point (P2P)]] [[Network topology|topology]].<ref name="zdnet2007-10-31">{{cite web| title= Pourquoi Free peine à déployer son réseau de fibre optique | url= http://www.zdnet.fr/actualites/internet/0,39020774,39375064,00.htm | date=31 October 2007 | access-date=2008-02-17 | language=fr}}</ref> High curvature optic fibers are manufactured by the Dutch company [[Draka Holding|Draka]].<ref name="silicon2008-06-20">{{cite web | title= Rencontre avec Draka, le fibreur de Free | url= http://www.silicon.fr/fr/news/2008/06/20/rencontre_avec_draka_le_fibreur_de_free | date= 20 June 2008 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080629061246/http://www.silicon.fr/fr/news/2008/06/20/rencontre_avec_draka_le_fibreur_de_free | archive-date= 29 June 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="reseauxtelecoms2008-06-30">{{cite web| title= La fibre optique se plie aux exigences parisiennes de Free | url= http://www.reseaux-telecoms.net/actualites/lire-la-fibre-optique-se-plie-aux-exigences-parisiennes-de-free-18444.html | date=30 June 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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The [[System deployment|deployment]] is still essentially in the horizontal phase (the vertical phase being connection to the subscriber premises), and large-scale deployment to customers is foreseen.<ref name="CP_110208_Eng"/> On 26 June 2008, {{Interlanguage link |
The [[System deployment|deployment]] is still essentially in the horizontal phase (the vertical phase being connection to the subscriber premises), and large-scale deployment to customers is foreseen.<ref name="CP_110208_Eng"/> On 26 June 2008, {{Interlanguage link|Maxime Lombardini|fr}} and the mayor inaugurated Free's FTTH network in a district of [[Montpellier]].<ref name="freenews2008-06-26"/> |
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In March 2008, [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] made the commitment to cover Paris at 75% by the second half of 2009, and reiterated its goal to connect 4 million French homes to its own [[FTTH]] network by 2012.<ref name="easybourse-interview-thomas-reynaud">{{cite web | title= Interview Thomas Reynaud | url= http://www.easybourse.com/Website/interview/1071-thomas-reynaud-iliad.php | date= 14 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080320235016/http://www.easybourse.com/Website/interview/1071-thomas-reynaud-iliad.php | archive-date= 20 March 2008 | url-status= dead |
In March 2008, [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] made the commitment to cover Paris at 75% by the second half of 2009, and reiterated its goal to connect 4 million French homes to its own [[FTTH]] network by 2012.<ref name="easybourse-interview-thomas-reynaud">{{cite web | title= Interview Thomas Reynaud | url= http://www.easybourse.com/Website/interview/1071-thomas-reynaud-iliad.php | date= 14 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080320235016/http://www.easybourse.com/Website/interview/1071-thomas-reynaud-iliad.php | archive-date= 20 March 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> Significant volumes of subscribers will be connected as soon as the legislative framework is in place,<ref name="CP_120308_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2007 Results: Press Release | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_120308_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125124626/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_120308_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> expected by [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] for autumn 2009.<ref name="ARCEP_OPTICAL_FIBRE_20_January">{{cite web| title= ARCEP held a meeting with the main operators involved in optical fibre rollouts in France | url= http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=8571&L=1&tx_gsactualite_pi1%5Buid%5D=1146&cHash=cf2792a168 | publisher = [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] | date=20 January 2009 | access-date=2009-07-18 }}</ref><ref name="ARCEP_PRESS_RELEASE_2009_06_22">{{cite web| title= ARCEP defines the terms of optical fibre rollouts to stimulate investment | url=http://www.arcep.fr/index.php?id=8571&L=1&tx_gsactualite_pi1[uid]=1177&cHash=a72424f18f | publisher = [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] | date=22 June 2009 | access-date=2009-07-18 }}</ref> |
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==Offers== |
==Offers== |
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* Free-of-charge migration to better [[Telecommunication circuit|connectivity]] when available to subscriber; |
* Free-of-charge migration to better [[Telecommunication circuit|connectivity]] when available to subscriber; |
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* Possibility to update the [[Freebox]] device; the upgrade price decreases with time and is free of charge after three years of subscription; |
* Possibility to update the [[Freebox]] device; the upgrade price decreases with time and is free of charge after three years of subscription; |
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* A /60 [[IPv6]] prefix.<ref name="CP_IPv6_121207_eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free deploys IPv6 | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_IPv6_121207_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 December 2007 | access-date= 2008-09-13 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081029173600/http://iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_IPv6_121207_eng.pdf | archive-date= 29 October 2008 | url-status= dead |
* A /60 [[IPv6]] prefix.<ref name="CP_IPv6_121207_eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free deploys IPv6 | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_IPv6_121207_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 December 2007 | access-date= 2008-09-13 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081029173600/http://iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_IPv6_121207_eng.pdf | archive-date= 29 October 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="rfc5569"/> |
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==Services== |
==Services== |
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|March 2004<ref name="CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA">{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited Free National and Local Calls for All Free ADSL Subscribers ! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 18 March 2004 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124322/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|March 2004<ref name="CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA">{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited Free National and Local Calls for All Free ADSL Subscribers ! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 18 March 2004 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124322/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2004/CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''1''' (Metropolitan France, all subscribers since then) |
'''1''' (Metropolitan France, all subscribers since then) |
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|'''0''' |
|'''0''' |
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|December 2005<ref name="cp_151205_eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free Phone Calls to the Most Frequently Called Countries with Freebox | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2005/cp_151205_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 15 December 2005 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127075146/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2005/cp_151205_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|December 2005<ref name="cp_151205_eng">{{Cite press release | title= Free Phone Calls to the Most Frequently Called Countries with Freebox | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2005/cp_151205_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 15 December 2005 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127075146/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2005/cp_151205_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''15''' (Austria, Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, United States) |
'''15''' (Austria, Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, United States) |
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|'''2''' (United States and Canada) |
|'''2''' (United States and Canada) |
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|June 2006<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited calls to landline numbers in Guadeloupe and Martinique included in the Freebox package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_090606_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 June 2006 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127113618/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_090606_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|June 2006<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited calls to landline numbers in Guadeloupe and Martinique included in the Freebox package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_090606_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 June 2006 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127113618/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_090606_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''26''' ([[Taiwan]], Norway, [[Canary Islands]], [[Jersey]], Greece...) |
'''26''' ([[Taiwan]], Norway, [[Canary Islands]], [[Jersey]], Greece...) |
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|'''2''' |
|'''2''' |
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|January 2007<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited calls to landline phones in 20 new international destinations and La Réunion included in the Freebox plan (29.99 euros per month) | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_190107_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 19 January 2007 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127125250/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_190107_en.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|January 2007<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Unlimited calls to landline phones in 20 new international destinations and La Réunion included in the Freebox plan (29.99 euros per month) | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_190107_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 19 January 2007 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127125250/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_190107_en.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''49''' (Turkey, Poland, [[Luxembourg]], Russia, Japan...) |
'''49''' (Turkey, Poland, [[Luxembourg]], Russia, Japan...) |
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|'''2''' |
|'''2''' |
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|September 2007<ref>{{Cite press release | title= 21 new destinations included in the Freebox package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_100907_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 10 September 2007 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124721/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_100907_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|September 2007<ref>{{Cite press release | title= 21 new destinations included in the Freebox package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_100907_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 10 September 2007 | access-date= 2008-06-29 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124721/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/Cp_100907_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''70''' ([[Peru]], [[Venezuela]], [[South Korea]], New Zealand...) |
'''70''' ([[Peru]], [[Venezuela]], [[South Korea]], New Zealand...) |
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|'''2''' |
|'''2''' |
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|February 2009<ref>{{Cite press release | title= 17 new destinations included in the Freebox flat rate package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_130109_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 13 January 2009 | access-date= 2009-01-13 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721001538/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_130109_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 21 July 2011 | url-status= dead |
|February 2009<ref>{{Cite press release | title= 17 new destinations included in the Freebox flat rate package | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_130109_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 13 January 2009 | access-date= 2009-01-13 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110721001538/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2008/CP_130109_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 21 July 2011 | url-status= dead }}</ref><ref name="free_telephone_destinations">{{cite web| title= Téléphone illimité | publisher= Free | url=http://www.free.fr/adsl/telephone.html | access-date=2009-01-30 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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'''100''' (India, South Africa, [[Laos]], [[Colombia]], [[Indonesia]]...) |
'''100''' (India, South Africa, [[Laos]], [[Colombia]], [[Indonesia]]...) |
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|'''2''' |
|'''2''' |
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|December 2009<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free includes unlimited calls to Morocco ! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_221209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 22 December 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100215023819/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_221209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 15 February 2010 | url-status= dead |
|December 2009<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Free includes unlimited calls to Morocco ! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_221209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 22 December 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100215023819/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2009/CP_221209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 15 February 2010 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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'''103''' ([[Morocco]], [[Paraguay]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]]) |
'''103''' ([[Morocco]], [[Paraguay]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]]) |
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In 2003, Free introduced unlimited phone calls at no additional price, while other [[switchboard operator|phone operators]] or [[ISP]]s charged per-minute fees for telephone calls.<ref name="cp_freeboxtel_310703"/> Competitors have then been forced to imitate these changes, but with fewer destinations included or at an additional price.<ref name="businessweek-iliad-exploits"/><ref name="gigaom2009-03-06"/> Bundled Free subscribers enjoy same free calls as those unbundled since March 2004.<ref name="CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA"/> Calls to United States and Canada have been free of charge since December 2005.<ref name="cp_151205_eng"/> |
In 2003, Free introduced unlimited phone calls at no additional price, while other [[switchboard operator|phone operators]] or [[ISP]]s charged per-minute fees for telephone calls.<ref name="cp_freeboxtel_310703"/> Competitors have then been forced to imitate these changes, but with fewer destinations included or at an additional price.<ref name="businessweek-iliad-exploits"/><ref name="gigaom2009-03-06"/> Bundled Free subscribers enjoy same free calls as those unbundled since March 2004.<ref name="CP-FREEBOXTEL180304VA"/> Calls to United States and Canada have been free of charge since December 2005.<ref name="cp_151205_eng"/> |
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In 2006, Free and [[France Telecom]] were in conflict against an unfair increase of [[Neuf Cegetel]] own [[Inter-Operator Tariff|termination tariff]], aimed at undermining unlimited phone offers in France. The French regulator [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] then decided to apply a threshold for call termination.<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Freebox: final confirmation that calls to landline numbers in France are to be free! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_010606_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 1 June 2006 | access-date= 2008-07-01 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127113906/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_010606_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
In 2006, Free and [[France Telecom]] were in conflict against an unfair increase of [[Neuf Cegetel]] own [[Inter-Operator Tariff|termination tariff]], aimed at undermining unlimited phone offers in France. The French regulator [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] then decided to apply a threshold for call termination.<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Freebox: final confirmation that calls to landline numbers in France are to be free! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_010606_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 1 June 2006 | access-date= 2008-07-01 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127113906/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2006/CP_010606_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> Unlimited free phone calls have been perennial in France since then. |
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====Telephone services==== |
====Telephone services==== |
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A wide range of telephone services are provided at no additional cost, such as an online [[answering machine]], [[ringback tone]] customization, [[call transfer]], [[caller ID]], inbound and outbound call filtering, [[conference call]]s, and [[Wi-Fi]] [[Voice over Internet Protocol|voice]] [[Session Initiation Protocol|SIP]].<ref name="free_telephone_services">{{cite web| title= Services de téléphonie | publisher= Free | url=http://www.free.fr/adsl/pages/telephone/services-de-telephonie.html | access-date=2009-01-30 | language=fr}}</ref> |
A wide range of telephone services are provided at no additional cost, such as an online [[answering machine]], [[ringback tone]] customization, [[call transfer]], [[caller ID]], inbound and outbound call filtering, [[conference call]]s, and [[Wi-Fi]] [[Voice over Internet Protocol|voice]] [[Session Initiation Protocol|SIP]].<ref name="free_telephone_services">{{cite web| title= Services de téléphonie | publisher= Free | url=http://www.free.fr/adsl/pages/telephone/services-de-telephonie.html | access-date=2009-01-30 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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Since April 2007, each customer has been assigned a fax number in addition to the traditional phone number. This additional [[Telephone line|line]] is dedicated to the [[Internet fax|online faxing]] service.<ref name="CP_250407_en">{{Cite press release | title= Freebox becomes also a fax | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_250407_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 25 April 2007 | access-date= 2009-01-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124611/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_250407_en.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
Since April 2007, each customer has been assigned a fax number in addition to the traditional phone number. This additional [[Telephone line|line]] is dedicated to the [[Internet fax|online faxing]] service.<ref name="CP_250407_en">{{Cite press release | title= Freebox becomes also a fax | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_250407_en.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 25 April 2007 | access-date= 2009-01-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124611/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_250407_en.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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===Television=== |
===Television=== |
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====IPTV leader==== |
====IPTV leader==== |
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According to a study published in 2008 by Light Reading,<ref name="lightreading-iptv-top10">{{cite web| title= French Dominate IPTV Top Ten | url= http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=143074 | date=14 January 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 }}</ref> Free is ''by far'' the largest [[IPTV]] carrier in the [[World]].<ref name="lightreading-iptv-iliad">{{cite web| title= Top Ten IPTV Carriers | url= http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=142594&page_number=11 | date=14 January 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 }}</ref> This fact is also confirmed by the TV Markets Quarterly Monitoring.<ref name="fierceiptv-top-european-iptv">{{cite web | title= Top European IPTV drivers | url= http://www.fierceiptv.com/story/top-european-iptv-drivers/2008-03-11 | date= 11 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-10-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081002031416/http://www.fierceiptv.com/story/top-european-iptv-drivers/2008-03-11 | archive-date= 2 October 2008 | url-status= dead |
According to a study published in 2008 by Light Reading,<ref name="lightreading-iptv-top10">{{cite web| title= French Dominate IPTV Top Ten | url= http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=143074 | date=14 January 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 }}</ref> Free is ''by far'' the largest [[IPTV]] carrier in the [[World]].<ref name="lightreading-iptv-iliad">{{cite web| title= Top Ten IPTV Carriers | url= http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=142594&page_number=11 | date=14 January 2008 | access-date=2008-07-10 }}</ref> This fact is also confirmed by the TV Markets Quarterly Monitoring.<ref name="fierceiptv-top-european-iptv">{{cite web | title= Top European IPTV drivers | url= http://www.fierceiptv.com/story/top-european-iptv-drivers/2008-03-11 | date= 11 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-10-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081002031416/http://www.fierceiptv.com/story/top-european-iptv-drivers/2008-03-11 | archive-date= 2 October 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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====ARDP protocol creator==== |
====ARDP protocol creator==== |
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===Freebox device=== |
===Freebox device=== |
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The sole property of Free, the [[Freebox]] device is loaned to the customer for the duration of the ADSL contract. More than a simple ADSL modem, it is the primary conduit through which Free provides many of its services. It also replaces many devices that customers may otherwise have to purchase and thus provides added value of its own. Customers wishing to use newer models |
The sole property of Free, the [[Freebox]] device is loaned to the customer for the duration of the ADSL contract. More than a simple ADSL modem, it is the primary conduit through which Free provides many of its services. It also replaces many devices that customers may otherwise have to purchase and thus provides added value of its own. Customers wishing to use newer models – such as the Freebox Revolution – must pay an extra fee. |
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The latest revision is actually composed of two parts: |
The latest revision is actually composed of two parts: |
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* A 'Server' device which houses an ADSL / optical fiber modem, 4 port gigabit switch, [[802.11n|802.11n/b/g Wifi]] access point/hotspot, [[powerline networking]], router, |
* A 'Server' device which houses an ADSL / optical fiber modem, 4 port gigabit switch, [[802.11n|802.11n/b/g Wifi]] access point/hotspot, [[powerline networking]], router, 250 GB [[Network-attached storage|NAS]] (extensible through [[USB]] and eSATA), wired and [[DECT]] wireless phone base, [[Universal Plug and Play|UPnP]] media server and more. |
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* A 'Player' set-top box which acts as an [[Digital Video Broadcasting|HD DVB]] recorder (using the Freebox Server NAS), TV over internet player, [[Blu-ray Disc|Blu-ray]] player, gaming console equipped with a gamepad and motion sensing remote, web browser. |
* A 'Player' set-top box which acts as an [[Digital Video Broadcasting|HD DVB]] recorder (using the Freebox Server NAS), TV over internet player, [[Blu-ray Disc|Blu-ray]] player, gaming console equipped with a gamepad and motion sensing remote, web browser. |
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Since August 2008, the parent company [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] (including Free and Alice brands) is the second-largest [[Internet service provider|ISP]] in France. The leader is [[Orange (telecoms)|Orange]] (former [[Government monopoly|state monopoly]] company [[France Telecom]]), and the third is [[SFR]]. |
Since August 2008, the parent company [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] (including Free and Alice brands) is the second-largest [[Internet service provider|ISP]] in France. The leader is [[Orange (telecoms)|Orange]] (former [[Government monopoly|state monopoly]] company [[France Telecom]]), and the third is [[SFR]]. |
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In 2007 (a major [[Consolidation (business)|consolidation]] year in the French [[broadband]] market), Free was the only [[Internet Service Provider|ISP]] brand to gain market share.<ref name="ILIAD_RA_2007">{{Cite press release | title= 2007 Results: Slide Show | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/ILIAD_RA_2007.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125075956/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/ILIAD_RA_2007.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
In 2007 (a major [[Consolidation (business)|consolidation]] year in the French [[broadband]] market), Free was the only [[Internet Service Provider|ISP]] brand to gain market share.<ref name="ILIAD_RA_2007">{{Cite press release | title= 2007 Results: Slide Show | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/ILIAD_RA_2007.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 March 2008 | access-date= 2008-03-16 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125075956/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/ILIAD_RA_2007.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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Free was the second-largest French [[Internet service provider|ISP]] until end June 2007, when competitor [[Neuf Cegetel]] [[Mergers and acquisitions|acquired]] {{Interlanguage link |
Free was the second-largest French [[Internet service provider|ISP]] until end June 2007, when competitor [[Neuf Cegetel]] [[Mergers and acquisitions|acquired]] {{Interlanguage link|Club Internet|fr}} ([[T-Online]] France).<ref>{{Cite press release | title= Neuf Cegetel Mass Market broadband customers top the 3 million mark | url= http://www.groupeneufcegetel.fr/dyn/File/2007_EN/070702CP-Club-Internet_EN.pdf | publisher = [[Neuf Cegetel]] | date=2 July 2007 | access-date=2008-02-23 }}</ref> [[Neuf Cegetel]] used to grow essentially by purchasing its competitors, until it was itself absorbed by [[SFR]]. Until 2009, Free has always had a higher [[organic growth]] than [[Neuf Cegetel]] and [[SFR]].<ref name="challenges-sfr-revanche">{{cite web | title= SFR tient sa revanche sur Internet | url= http://www.challenges.fr/high_tech/20090901.CHA6879/sfr_tient_sa_revanche_sur_internet_par_gaelle_macke_cha.html | date= 1 September 2009 | access-date= 2009-09-04 | language= fr }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> |
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[[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] regained its second place after buying "Alice Telecom" from [[Telecom Italia]] in the summer of 2008.<ref name="CP_260808_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Iliad has completed the acquisition of Alice France from Telecom Italia | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_260808_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 26 August 2008 | access-date= 2008-11-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125170155/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_260808_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
[[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] regained its second place after buying "Alice Telecom" from [[Telecom Italia]] in the summer of 2008.<ref name="CP_260808_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Iliad has completed the acquisition of Alice France from Telecom Italia | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_260808_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 26 August 2008 | access-date= 2008-11-30 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125170155/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_260808_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
||
Until the purchase of Alice France,<ref name="CP_260808_Eng"/> Free's subscribers growth was exclusively [[Organic growth|organic]], except for the strategic acquisition of the {{Interlanguage link |
Until the purchase of Alice France,<ref name="CP_260808_Eng"/> Free's subscribers growth was exclusively [[Organic growth|organic]], except for the strategic acquisition of the {{Interlanguage link|CitéFibre|fr}} [[FTTH]] [[Internet service provider|ISP]] in 2006 (about 500 subscribers).<ref name="CP_201006_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= Iliad announces the acquisition of CiteFibre | url= http://www.iliad.fr/presse/2006/CP_201006_Eng.pdf | publisher = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date=20 October 2006 | access-date=2008-02-10 }}</ref> |
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{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 85%; text-align: center" |
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 85%; text-align: center" |
||
Line 418: | Line 425: | ||
|16.0% |
|16.0% |
||
|- |
|- |
||
|2005<ref name="CP_070207_CA_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2006 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_070207_CA_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 7 February 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182106/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_070207_CA_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead |
|2005<ref name="CP_070207_CA_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2006 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_070207_CA_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 7 February 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071018182106/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_070207_CA_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 18 October 2007 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
||
|475,000 |
|475,000 |
||
|1,120,000 |
|1,120,000 |
||
Line 438: | Line 445: | ||
|17.9% |
|17.9% |
||
|- |
|- |
||
|2007<ref name="CP_110208_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2007 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_110208_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 February 2008 | access-date= 2008-02-17 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125165915/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_110208_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
|2007<ref name="CP_110208_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2007 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_110208_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 February 2008 | access-date= 2008-02-17 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081125165915/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2008/CP_110208_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 25 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
||
|537,000 |
|537,000 |
||
|2,367,000 |
|2,367,000 |
||
Line 448: | Line 455: | ||
|18.7% |
|18.7% |
||
|- |
|- |
||
|2008<ref name="CP_120209_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2008 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2009/CP_120209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 February 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090306102040/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2009/CP_120209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 6 March 2009 | url-status= dead |
|2008<ref name="CP_120209_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2008 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2009/CP_120209_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 12 February 2009 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090306102040/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2009/CP_120209_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 6 March 2009 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
||
|901,132 |
|901,132 |
||
|3,323,868 |
|3,323,868 |
||
Line 458: | Line 465: | ||
|23.7% |
|23.7% |
||
|- |
|- |
||
|2009<ref name="CP_110210_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2009 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2010/CP_110210_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 February 2010 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100331191059/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2010/CP_110210_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 31 March 2010 | url-status= dead |
|2009<ref name="CP_110210_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 2009 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2010/CP_110210_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 11 February 2010 | access-date= 2010-06-12 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100331191059/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2010/CP_110210_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 31 March 2010 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
||
|651,000 |
|651,000 |
||
|3,805,000 |
|3,805,000 |
||
Line 469: | Line 476: | ||
|} |
|} |
||
* Free has the lowest [[churn rate]] amongst French [[broadband]] providers, below 1% per month.<ref name="ILIAD_RA_2007"/><ref name="CP_291007_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 3Q 2007 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_291007_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 29 October 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127075558/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_291007_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead |
* Free has the lowest [[churn rate]] amongst French [[broadband]] providers, below 1% per month.<ref name="ILIAD_RA_2007"/><ref name="CP_291007_Eng">{{Cite press release | title= 3Q 2007 Revenues | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_291007_Eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 29 October 2007 | access-date= 2008-02-10 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127075558/http://www.iliad.fr/en/finances/2007/CP_291007_Eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead }}</ref> |
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* [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] targets 4 million [[Broadband]] ([[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line|ADSL]] and [[FTTH]]) subscribers by 2010 and an unbundling ratio of 85%.<ref name="CP_291007_Eng"/> |
* [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] targets 4 million [[Broadband]] ([[Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line|ADSL]] and [[FTTH]]) subscribers by 2010 and an unbundling ratio of 85%.<ref name="CP_291007_Eng"/> |
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In 2007, Free had the greatest [[Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization|EBITDA]] margin of the sector in Europe, was the only actor to gain market share in France and had a [[debt]] ratio 10 times lower than the industry average. Thanks to these assets, the initial [[FTTH]] deployment (targeted at 2012) will be entirely self-financed by existing activities.<ref name="easybourse-interview-thomas-reynaud"/> |
In 2007, Free had the greatest [[Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization|EBITDA]] margin of the sector in Europe, was the only actor to gain market share in France and had a [[debt]] ratio 10 times lower than the industry average. Thanks to these assets, the initial [[FTTH]] deployment (targeted at 2012) will be entirely self-financed by existing activities.<ref name="easybourse-interview-thomas-reynaud"/> |
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Although investors are concerned about the investments in both the 3G mobile network and an FTTH network (1 billion euros each),<ref name="yahoo-strategy"/> the perspectives of Free and of the whole sector in Europe are promising according to analysts.<ref name="yahoo-exane">{{cite web | title= European Telecoms Operators in Strong Position to Ride Out Recession | url= https://finance.yahoo.com/news/European-Telecoms-Operators-bw-14591104.html | date= 10 March 2009 | access-date= 2009-03-30 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> |
Although investors are concerned about the investments in both the 3G mobile network and an FTTH network (1 billion euros each),<ref name="yahoo-strategy">{{cite web|title=Iliad : des performances sans équivalents en Europe |url=http://fr.biz.yahoo.com/20032009/17/iliad-des-performances-sans-equivalents-en-europe.html |date=20 March 2009 |access-date=2009-03-30 |language=fr }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> the perspectives of Free and of the whole sector in Europe are promising according to analysts.<ref name="yahoo-exane">{{cite web | title= European Telecoms Operators in Strong Position to Ride Out Recession | url= https://finance.yahoo.com/news/European-Telecoms-Operators-bw-14591104.html | date= 10 March 2009 | access-date= 2009-03-30 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> |
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===Logos and slogans=== |
===Logos and slogans=== |
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|2011 |
|2011 |
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| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Feel Free<ref>{{cite web| title= |
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Feel Free<ref>{{cite web| title= Free : Mr Easy remplace Rodolphe et change de slogan (vidéos) | url= http://www.pcinpact.com/actu/news/61178-free-mr-easy-rodolphe-feel-free-slogan.htm | date=5 January 2011 | access-date=2011-02-01 }}</ref> |
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|- |
|- |
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|2012 |
|2012 |
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Line 523: | Line 530: | ||
|Merci Free ! |
|Merci Free ! |
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|} |
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==Culture== |
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⚫ | |||
===Disruptive=== |
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Free is the last [[Startup company|independent]] operator in France. [[Google]], in the first years of its existence, was sometimes suggested as a comparison for the Free spirit. Unlike all other French broadband [[Internet service provider|ISPs]], nearly everything is designed within the company: Freebox devices, [[Digital subscriber line access multiplexer|DSLAMs]], [[network switch]]es and the backend billing system.<ref name="gigaom2007-12-21"/> The company has a medium- and long-term industrial strategy rather than the short-term financial strategy of its competitors.<ref name="yahoo-strategy">{{cite web|title=Iliad : des performances sans équivalents en Europe |url=http://fr.biz.yahoo.com/20032009/17/iliad-des-performances-sans-equivalents-en-europe.html |date=20 March 2009 |access-date=2009-03-30 |language=fr }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> |
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{{blockquote|Resist, persist and ignore the obstacles, are probably the greatest qualities of the culture of Free, a culture that has enabled this operator and its leaders to move forward and keep this company alive and leader, against all odds. Technologically, this is a company ready to make choices without worrying about what is happening around.|Ariase<ref name="ariase-freeks">{{cite web| title= Parler à Free, un plaisir hors de prix ? | url= http://www.ariase.com/fr/news/free-freeks-hotline-chatel-article-1969.html | date=9 February 2009 | access-date=2009-03-29 | language=fr}}</ref>}} |
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Free is often designated by journalists as the "broadband maverick",<ref name="gigaom2007-12-21"/> the "troublemaker of the Internet",<ref name="24heures-ch-trublion">{{cite web| title= Free, trublion de l'internet, pourrait aussi changer la donne côté mobile | url= http://www.24heures.ch/depeches/hi-tech/free-trublion-internet-pourrait-changer-cote-mobile | date=14 January 2009 | access-date=2009-03-14 | language=fr}}</ref> a "do-it-yourselfer",<ref name="businessweek-iliad-exploits"/> a "pioneer in IPTV",<ref name="ateme-cp-29">{{Cite press release | title= Renowned Businessman and Visionary Founder of Free Telecom, Xavier Niel, Joins ATEME Board of Directors | url= http://www.ateme.com/press_releases_archives_detail.php5?id=29 | publisher= [[Ateme]] | date= 14 March 2007 | access-date= 2009-03-14 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090211044118/http://ateme.com/press_releases_archives_detail.php5?id=29 | archive-date= 11 February 2009 | url-status= dead | df= dmy-all }}</ref> a "truly disruptive company",<ref name="gigaom2009-03-06">{{cite web| title= In Europe, VoIP Grows & Grows | url= http://gigaom.com/2009/03/06/in-europe-voip-grows-grows/ | date=6 March 2009 | access-date=2008-02-17 }}</ref> the "[[geek]]'s ISP", the "cactus of the telecoms",<ref name="capital-xavier-niel">{{cite web | title= Xavier Niel, fondateur de Free, le cactus des télécoms | url= http://www.capital.fr/carriere/dossiers/xavier-niel-fondateur-de-free-le-cactus-des-telecoms-193693 | date= 26 March 2008 | access-date= 2009-03-12 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090310173057/http://www.capital.fr/carriere/dossiers/xavier-niel-fondateur-de-free-le-cactus-des-telecoms-193693 | archive-date= 10 March 2009 | url-status= dead | df= dmy-all }}</ref> the "Broadband Rebel", "one of the greatest French industrial successes of the last twenty years", a "Silicon Valley success story", a "Robin Hood", an "Uncle Scrooge", a "nightmare vision for Orange, SFR and Bouygues".<ref name="lejdd-free-rebel">{{cite web | title= Free, le rebelle du haut débit | url= http://www.lejdd.fr/cmc/economie/200913/free-le-rebelle-du-haut-debit_196361.html | date= 23 March 2009 | access-date= 2009-03-23 | language= fr | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090325010941/http://www.lejdd.fr/cmc/economie/200913/free-le-rebelle-du-haut-debit_196361.html | archive-date= 25 March 2009 | url-status= dead | df= dmy-all }}</ref> |
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===Openness=== |
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The ISP, as well as its owner [[Xavier Niel]], promote [[Political freedom|free]] and [[Alternative media|independent]] media, such as: |
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* Television channels that have emerged through [[Freebox]] thanks to fair and handy broadcast conditions: [[Nolife (TV channel)|Nolife]]<ref name="ecrans-nolife">{{cite web| title= Nolife, la télé qui réveille les geeks | url= http://www.ecrans.fr/Nolife-la-tele-qui-reveille-les.html | date=12 February 2009 | access-date=2007-03-06 | language=fr}}</ref> and [[Arrêt sur images]].<ref name="CP_021208">{{Cite press release | title= Arrêt sur Images, émission emblématique d'analyse du monde des médias renaît à la télévision sur Freebox TV ! | url= http://www.iliad.fr/presse/2008/CP_021208.pdf | publisher = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date=2 December 2008 | access-date=2009-05-16 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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* Toll-free legal music streaming: [[Deezer]].<ref name="CP_230807">{{Cite press release | title= Free lance son service de musique à la demande illimitée et gratuite avec Deezer.com | url= http://www.iliad.fr/presse/2007/CP_230807.pdf | publisher = [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date=23 August 2007 | access-date=2009-03-14 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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* [[TV 2.0]]: since June 2007, ''Freenauts'' can broadcast their own TV channel by plugging a [[Digital camera#Analog electronic cameras|simple analog camera]] into the [[Freebox]].<ref name="CP_280607_eng">{{Cite press release | title= TV Perso Freebox: With Freebox, HD Free subscribers can create their own television channel | url= http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_280607_eng.pdf | publisher= [[Iliad (company)|Iliad]] | date= 28 June 2007 | access-date= 2009-03-14 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081127124950/http://www.iliad.fr/en/presse/2007/CP_280607_eng.pdf | archive-date= 27 November 2008 | url-status= dead | df= dmy-all }}</ref> |
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* Emerging [[Alternative media|alternative]] press in France: [[Mediapart]],<ref name="lesoir-be-mediapart">{{cite web| title= Edwy Plenel lance " Mediapart " | url= http://www.lesoir.be/la_vie_du_net/actunet/internet-un-site-d-informatio-2008-03-16-584671.shtml | date=16 March 2008 | access-date=2009-03-12 | language=fr}}</ref> [[Bakchich (internet)|Bakchich]],<ref name="bakchich-leve">{{cite web | title= Bakchich lève 330 000 euros et vise l'équilibre d'ici six mois | url= http://www.bakchich.info/Bakchich-leve-330-000-euros-et.html | archive-url= https://archive.today/20090302072510/http://www.bakchich.info/Bakchich-leve-330-000-euros-et.html | url-status= dead | archive-date= 2 March 2009 | date= 26 February 2009 | access-date= 2009-03-12 | language= fr }}</ref> {{Interlanguage link multi|Vendredi (newspaper)|fr|3=Vendredi (hebdomadaire, 2008)}}, and {{Interlanguage link multi|Terra Eco|fr}}.<ref name="journaldunet-terra-economica">{{cite web| title= Xavier Niel soutient la presse alternative en ligne | url= http://www.journaldunet.com/breve/france/35109/xavier-niel-soutient-la-presse-alternative-en-ligne.shtml | date=12 February 2009 | access-date=2009-03-12 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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* Video publishing platform [[vpod.tv]].<ref name="vpod-board">{{cite web|title=Xavier Niel, founder of Iliad / free.fr joins vpod.tv Advisory Board |url=http://blog.vpod.tv/2008/07/xavier-niel-fou.html |date=21 July 2008 |access-date=2009-03-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090307205740/http://blog.vpod.tv/2008/07/xavier-niel-fou.html |archive-date=7 March 2009 }}</ref> |
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===Corporate culture=== |
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Corporate culture appears obvious from these remarkable facts: |
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* The call center is run almost entirely on [[Ubuntu (operating system)|Ubuntu]]-based [[Personal computer|PC]]s.<ref name="gigaom2007-12-21"/> |
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* On startup, each Freebox HD device was displaying '''Rock'n'roll''' on his LCD screen. |
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* On advertising pictures, the time displayed by the Freebox device is '''13:37''' ([[leet]]). |
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* In February 2000, Xavier Niel offered 10 million [[French franc|francs]] to [[Google]] directors to buy their search engine activities in France (the offer was declined).<ref name="google-proposition">{{cite web| title= Google et Free, de vieilles connaissances | url= http://www.lefigaro.fr/lefigaromagazine/2008/09/13/01006-20080913ARTFIG00089--google-et-free-de-vieilles-connaissances-.php | date=13 September 2008 | access-date=2009-03-29 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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* The name Free was chosen in 1999 two weeks before the launch of the service, and eventually became the company's name, the other candidate name being '''Online'''<ref>{{cite web| title= Curiosité de routage email free.fr | url= http://www.mail-archive.com/frnog@frnog.org/msg06027.html | publisher = Frnog.org | date=10 June 2009 |access-date=2009-07-18 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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* The [[Freebox]] device name was inspired by the name of a pack of cigarettes.<ref name="ARECEP_letter_65">{{cite web| title= ARCEP letter 65 | url= http://www.arcep.fr/uploads/tx_gspublication/lettre65.pdf | publisher = [[Autorité de Régulation des Communications Électroniques, des Postes et de la Distribution de la Presse|ARCEP]] |date = January 2009| access-date=2009-04-29 | language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title= Clin d'oeil : Un paquet de Freebox à fumer | url= http://www.universfreebox.com/article7958.html | publisher = Universfreebox.com | date=29 April 2009 | access-date=2009-04-29 | language=fr}}</ref> |
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===Popularity in France=== |
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''Freenaut'' is the common designation for each [[internaut]] using the Internet through a Free connection. This community is estimated to reach between 10 and 12 million individuals as of March 2009.<ref name="lexpress-chilipoker">{{cite web| title= Chilipoker parie sur l'ouverture du marché des jeux en ligne | url= http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/economie/chilipoker-parie-sur-l-ouverture-du-marche-des-jeux-en-ligne_746091.html | date=9 March 2009 | access-date=2009-03-14 | language=fr}}</ref> The ''Freenaut'' community includes a core group of technology enthusiasts who contribute to Free's influence and popularity in several ways: |
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* User [[personal web page|web sites]] hosted by Free for free. |
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* Live {{Interlanguage link multi|TV Perso|fr}} shows presenters. |
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* {{Interlanguage link multi|Télésite|fr}} developers (news, weather, games, video blogs, alternate TV interfaces...). |
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* Free [[wiki]] writers. |
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* Developers of {{Interlanguage link multi|Freeplayer|fr}} software. |
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* Contributors to Free [[Bug tracking system|bugtracker]]. |
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* Network monitoring, unbundling curve graphs and FTTH deployment maps. |
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According to recurrent [[audience measurement]] reports conducted by [[Médiamétrie]], Free's general portal is the fourth most popular [[website]] in France.<ref name="2009_01_13_CdP_AudienceInternet_Novembre_2008">{{Cite press release | title= L'audience de l'Internet en France en novembre 2008 | url= http://www.mediametrie.fr/fichier.php?fichier_id=714&element_id=621&module=resultats | publisher= [[Médiamétrie]] | format= PDF | date= 13 January 2009 | access-date= 2009-01-13 | language= fr }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="2009_01_13_CdP_AudienceInternet_Decembre_2008">{{Cite press release | title= L'audience de l'Internet en France en décembre 2008 | url= http://www.mediametrie.fr/fichier.php?fichier_id=723&element_id=629&module=resultats | publisher= [[Médiamétrie]] | format= PDF | date= 3 February 2009 | access-date= 2009-02-14 | language= fr }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="2009_04_06_CdP_AudienceInternetFevrier2009">{{Cite press release | title= L'audience de l'Internet en France en février 2009 | url= http://www.mediametrie.fr/fichier.php?fichier_id=743&element_id=647&module=resultats | publisher= [[Médiamétrie]] | format= PDF | date= 9 April 2009 | access-date= 2009-04-29 | language= fr }}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> During peak load hours, Free accounts for nearly half the traffic on the [[Amsterdam Internet Exchange]].<ref name="gigaom2007-12-21"/> |
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===Criticism=== |
===Criticism=== |
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On 3 January 2013 at 4pm in France, Free released a new firmware for its latest modem named "Revolution" which contained an [[Ad filtering|advertisement blocker]]. The firmware of the modems was updated when rebooting, and the Ad filtering was enabled by default. Within a few hours, Free gained media attention and was strongly criticized by website editors for penalizing them instead of Free's target Google. On 7 January at 8.30am, the Ad filtering was removed before Free ultimately decided, on 17 January at 6pm, to include the Ad filter and disable it by default. However, customers who restarted their modem between |
On 3 January 2013 at 4pm in France, Free released a new firmware for its latest modem named "Revolution" which contained an [[Ad filtering|advertisement blocker]]. The firmware of the modems was updated when rebooting, and the Ad filtering was enabled by default. Within a few hours, Free gained media attention and was strongly criticized by website editors for penalizing them instead of Free's target Google. On 7 January at 8.30am, the Ad filtering was removed before Free ultimately decided, on 17 January at 6pm, to include the Ad filter and disable it by default. However, customers who restarted their modem between 3 and 7 January had enabled the option without even knowing it. |
||
Since Free is one of the biggest ISP in France, worries started to raise of French hosting forums concerning the people's interest into Ad blockers in general. |
Since Free is one of the biggest ISP in France, worries started to raise of French hosting forums concerning the people's interest into Ad blockers in general. |
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===Services=== |
===Services=== |
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* {{Interlanguage link |
* {{Interlanguage link|FreeWifi|fr|3=Freebox#FreeWifi}} – large WiFi community |
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* {{Interlanguage link |
* {{Interlanguage link|TV Perso|fr}} – personal television service (TV2.0) on TV |
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==References== |
==References== |
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== Further reading == |
== Further reading == |
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* {{Cite book |title=Les 100 mots de l'Internet | author-link=Xavier Niel | last1=Niel | first1=Xavier | last2=Roux | first2=Dominique | publisher=PUF | series=Que sais-je ? | date=14 May 2008 | isbn=978-2-13-056631-1 | language=fr}} |
* {{Cite book |title=Les 100 mots de l'Internet | author-link=Xavier Niel | last1=Niel | first1=Xavier | last2=Roux | first2=Dominique | publisher=PUF | series=Que sais-je ? | date=14 May 2008 | isbn=978-2-13-056631-1 | language=fr}} |
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* {{Cite book |title=RFC 5569, 6rd |
* {{Cite book |title=RFC 5569, 6rd – IPv6 Rapid Deployment | author-link=Rémi Despres | last=Despres | first=Rémi | publisher=IETF | date=January 2010 | url=http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc5569 }} |
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* {{Cite book |title=Access Right Distribution Protocol (ARDP) | author-link=Alexandre Cassen | last=Cassen | first=Alexandre | publisher=IETF | date=25 May 2009 | url=http://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-cassen-access-right-distribution-protocol-06 }} |
* {{Cite book |title=Access Right Distribution Protocol (ARDP) | author-link=Alexandre Cassen | last=Cassen | first=Alexandre | publisher=IETF | date=25 May 2009 | url=http://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-cassen-access-right-distribution-protocol-06 }} |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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{{Commons category}} |
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* |
* {{Official website|}} |
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{{Clear}} |
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{{CATV}} |
{{CATV}} |
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[[Category:Iliad SA]] |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Free (ISP)}} |
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[[Category:Telecommunications companies of France]] |
[[Category:Telecommunications companies of France]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Companies based in Paris]] |
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[[Category:French |
[[Category:French brands]] |
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[[Category:Telecommunications companies established in 1999]] |
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[[Category:1999 establishments in France]] |
![]() |
This article contains text that is written in a promotional tone. Please help improve it by removing promotional language and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from a neutral point of view. (January 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message)
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![]() | |
Company type | S.A.S. |
---|---|
Industry | Telecommunications |
Founded | 26 April 1999; 25 years ago (1999-04-26) |
Founder | Xavier Niel |
Headquarters |
,
France
|
Area served | France |
Key people |
|
Products | Freebox, Freebox TV |
Services | Fixed-line Internet services, IP television, fixed-line and mobile telephony, quadruple play, network services
|
Owner | Iliad (100%) |
Number of employees | 5665 |
Parent | Iliad |
Subsidiaries | Free Mobile (100%) Free Infrastructure (100%) |
Website | www |
Free S.A.S. is a French telecommunications company, subsidiaryofIliad S.A. that provides voice, video, data, and Internet telecommunications to consumers in France. Its head office is in the 8th arrondissementofParis and it is the second-largest ISP in France.
Free provides ISP services in France[1][2] and in the 30 OECD countries.[3] It was the first company to offer a "triple play" service in France[4][5][6] through its self-produced singular Freebox set-top box, claiming to have invented the box marketing concept in France in reference to all the other French ISPs who thereafter released "triple play" modems named to include the anglicism box as a suffix. These boxes provide comprehensive telecommunication services such as high-speed Internet, telephone and digital television packages, leading Free to become the world's number one IPTV provider[7] offering almost systematically IPTV to subscribers and optimizing it to be available on most landlines.[8][9]
Developing its own 3G and 4G networks, Free Mobile was launched in 2012 and became the fourth mobile network operator in France.
Free was the third ISP in France to offer Internet access without a subscription or a surcharged phone number, on 26 April 1999.[10] Unlike its predecessors in the niche of access without subscription (World Online on 1999-04-01 and Freesurf [fr] on 1999-04-19), Free's offer was not restricted in time or number of subscribers.
In 2002, Free was the first ISP to provide a V.92 connection.[11]
Free dial-up offer milestones | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date | Technology | Down IP | UpIP |
1999-04-26[10] | Voiceband | 56 kbit/s | 33,6 kbit/s |
2002-02-27[11] | V.92 | 56 kbit/s | 48 kbit/s |
Since September 2002, Free contributed significantly to French ADSL boom. The offer was able to launch as soon as the incumbent was forced to stop abuse of dominant position and to apply fair wholesale prices.[12]
Free bundled ADSL offer milestones | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date | Technology | Down ATM | UpATM |
2002-09-19[4] | ADSL | 512 kbit/s | 128 kbit/s |
2003-12-12[13] | ADSL | 1024 kbit/s | 128 kbit/s |
2004-07-27[14] | ADSL | 2048 kbit/s | 128 kbit/s |
2005-02-09[15] | ADSL | 10 Mbit/s | 320 kbit/s |
2005-07-20[16] | ADSL | 10 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
2008-03-20[17] | ADSL2+ | 22 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
Unbundling, in France, refers to the obligation for the incumbent carrier France Telecom to lease the local loop, because it is a natural monopoly. Although the unbundling process was intended to start by 2000, the actual unbundling process actually started at the end of 2002, after a long conflict between the French regulation authority ARCEP and the non-cooperative incumbent.[18]
Free has to pay a rental fee of €9 per month and per subscriber to the incumbent for the twisted pairofcopper between the area central office and the subscriber premises.[19] Although more expensive than the real cost of €7.63,[20] this solution is still far more profitable than the bundled option.
Since January 2003, a Freenaut has maintained an unofficial website, showing figures and graphics about Free unbundled network deployment (Free Unbundling).[21] Another Freenaut website has provided network status monitoring maps Unbundling status and location[22] since the end of 2003. These initiatives are made possible thanks to the transparency of Free's network: their equipment replies to ping and has a meaningful reverse DNS.
Free unbundled ADSL offer milestones | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date | Technologies | Down ATM | UpATM |
2003-11-27[6] | ADSL | 1024 kbit/s | 256 kbit/s |
2003-12-12[13] | ADSL | 2048 kbit/s | 256 kbit/s |
2004-06-04[23] | ADSL | 5 Mbit/s | 350 kbit/s |
2004-08-24[24] | ADSL | 6 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
2004-10-20[25] | ADSL2+ | 15 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
2005-01-06[26] | ADSL2+ | 20 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
2005-11-08[27] | ADSL2+ | 24 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
2006-07-26[28] | 28 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s | |
2007-06-21[29] | 28 Mbit/s | 1 Mbit/s |
Free FTTH deployment milestones | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Date | Technology | Down IP | UpIP | Deployment |
2006-09-11[30] | Iliad P2P[31] | 50 Mbit/s | 50 Mbit/s | One NRO and some testers in Paris |
2007-08-31[32] | Iliad P2P[31] | 100 Mbit/s | 50 Mbit/s | Some NROs and few subscribers in Paris[31] |
2008-06-26[32] | Iliad P2P[31] | 100 Mbit/s | 50 Mbit/s | Inauguration of Montpellier FTTH network[33] |
2009-12-01[32] | Iliad P2P[31] | 100 Mbit/s | 50 Mbit/s | Inauguration of Valenciennes FTTH network[34] |
On 11 November 2006, Free announced the deployment of a new fiber to the home (FTTH) network for its subscribers.[30] The initial plan's goal is to cover Paris as well as some towns in the Paris suburbs and selected neighborhoods in other French cities by 2012. By December 2007, the work was 30% finished, and the remaining work was progressing "at a furious pace".[9]
On 31 August 2007, Free updated the offer with more details. Download bandwidth shall be 100 Mbit/s and TV services shall be available for two televisions, at the same price of €29.99/month.[32]
Free has developed its own fiber network technology, called Iliad P2P, based on Ethernet in the First Mile and having a point to point (P2P) topology.[31] High curvature optic fibers are manufactured by the Dutch company Draka.[35][36]
The deployment is still essentially in the horizontal phase (the vertical phase being connection to the subscriber premises), and large-scale deployment to customers is foreseen.[37] On 26 June 2008, Maxime Lombardini [fr] and the mayor inaugurated Free's FTTH network in a district of Montpellier.[33]
In March 2008, Iliad made the commitment to cover Paris at 75% by the second half of 2009, and reiterated its goal to connect 4 million French homes to its own FTTH network by 2012.[38] Significant volumes of subscribers will be connected as soon as the legislative framework is in place,[39] expected by ARCEP for autumn 2009.[40][41]
The Voiceband Dial-up internet access offer counts for a very small number of subscribers currently, as 98% of French homes were eligible for ADSL in 2006.[42]
Free began its activities with the famous free-of-charge Internet access, although data phone calls fees are not included. Another offer combines an Internet access with 50 hours of data phone calls for 14.94 euros per month.
Initially, Freebox was the name of the Freebox device, which consists of the Set-top box and Modem. Because of the device's popularity and reputation, it eventually became the name of the offer.
According to a study published by Google at the RIPE meeting in October 2008, Free is probably the largest native IPv6 ISP in the World.[45] By end 2008, almost all French IPv6 traffic measured in the study comes from Free customers.[45]
Free deployed the IPv6 infrastructure in only 5 weeks, from 7 November to 11 December 2007, thanks to an innovative 6rd (IPv6 rapid deployment) proposal by Rémi Després.[44]
In May 2009 Free reconfigured the set-top boxes to act as Wi-Fi hotspots by default. With over 3 million hotspots,[46] it is thought to be the largest Wi-Fi hotspot network in the world during that time. They require authentication which makes them only accessible to Free's ADSL and now mobile customers. Their main use is thus to let customers away from home continue accessing the Internet using the ADSL connection of other Free customer within Wi-Fi range. For security reasons this access is isolated from the ADSL user's normal Wi-Fi network, and is given lower priority.
Included international phone calls | ||
---|---|---|
Date | Number of destinations at no extra cost | |
Landline | Mobiles | |
July 2003[5] |
1 (Metropolitan France, un-bundled subscribers only) |
0 |
March 2004[47] |
1 (Metropolitan France, all subscribers since then) |
0 |
December 2005[48] |
15 (Austria, Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, United Kingdom, United States) |
2 (United States and Canada) |
June 2006[49] |
26 (Taiwan, Norway, Canary Islands, Jersey, Greece...) |
2 |
January 2007[50] |
49 (Turkey, Poland, Luxembourg, Russia, Japan...) |
2 |
September 2007[51] |
70 (Peru, Venezuela, South Korea, New Zealand...) |
2 |
February 2009[52][53] | 2 | |
December 2009[54] |
103 (Morocco, Paraguay, Trinidad and Tobago) |
2 |
In 2003, Free introduced unlimited phone calls at no additional price, while other phone operatorsorISPs charged per-minute fees for telephone calls.[5] Competitors have then been forced to imitate these changes, but with fewer destinations included or at an additional price.[8][2] Bundled Free subscribers enjoy same free calls as those unbundled since March 2004.[47] Calls to United States and Canada have been free of charge since December 2005.[48]
In 2006, Free and France Telecom were in conflict against an unfair increase of Neuf Cegetel own termination tariff, aimed at undermining unlimited phone offers in France. The French regulator ARCEP then decided to apply a threshold for call termination.[55] Unlimited free phone calls have been perennial in France since then.
A wide range of telephone services are provided at no additional cost, such as an online answering machine, ringback tone customization, call transfer, caller ID, inbound and outbound call filtering, conference calls, and Wi-Fi voice SIP.[56]
Since April 2007, each customer has been assigned a fax number in addition to the traditional phone number. This additional line is dedicated to the online faxing service.[57]
According to a study published in 2008 by Light Reading,[58] Free is by far the largest IPTV carrier in the World.[59] This fact is also confirmed by the TV Markets Quarterly Monitoring.[7]
Access rights of television channels are applied securely without requiring any smartcard, thanks to the ARDP[60] protocol created by Free and submitted to the community through the IETF.
The sole property of Free, the Freebox device is loaned to the customer for the duration of the ADSL contract. More than a simple ADSL modem, it is the primary conduit through which Free provides many of its services. It also replaces many devices that customers may otherwise have to purchase and thus provides added value of its own. Customers wishing to use newer models – such as the Freebox Revolution – must pay an extra fee.
The latest revision is actually composed of two parts:
Since August 2008, the parent company Iliad (including Free and Alice brands) is the second-largest ISP in France. The leader is Orange (former state monopoly company France Telecom), and the third is SFR.
In 2007 (a major consolidation year in the French broadband market), Free was the only ISP brand to gain market share.[63]
Free was the second-largest French ISP until end June 2007, when competitor Neuf Cegetel acquired Club Internet [fr] (T-Online France).[64] Neuf Cegetel used to grow essentially by purchasing its competitors, until it was itself absorbed by SFR. Until 2009, Free has always had a higher organic growth than Neuf Cegetel and SFR.[65]
Iliad regained its second place after buying "Alice Telecom" from Telecom Italia in the summer of 2008.[66]
Until the purchase of Alice France,[66] Free's subscribers growth was exclusively organic, except for the strategic acquisition of the CitéFibre [fr] FTTH ISP in 2006 (about 500 subscribers).[67]
Free broadband subscribers and market share since 2002 | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Free Broadband subscribers | ADSL subscribers in France | Broadband subscribers in France | |||||
Bundled | Unbundled | Total[68] | Unbundling ratio | Total[69] | Free market share | Total[69] | Free market share | |
2002 | 95,000 | 3,000 | 98,000 | 3.1% | 1,361,377 | 7.2% | ||
2003 | 320,000 | 153,000 | 473,000 | 32.4% | 2,967,434 | 15.9% | ||
2004 | 500,000 | 549,000 | 1,049,000 | 52.4% | 6,072,723 | 17.2% | 6,529,997 | 16.0% |
2005[70] | 475,000 | 1,120,000 | 1,595,000 | 70.2% | 8,881,875 | 17,9% | 9,500,000 | 16,8% |
2006[70] | 548,000 | 1,730,000 | 2,278,000 | 75.9% | 12,019,000 | 19.0% | 12,700,000 | 17.9% |
2007[37] | 537,000 | 2,367,000 | 2,904,000 | 81.5% | 14,741,000 | 19.7% | 15,550,000 | 18.7% |
2008[71] | 901,132 | 3,323,868 | 4,225,000 | 78.7% | 16,804,000 | 25.1% | 17,819,000 | 23.7% |
2009[72] | 651,000 | 3,805,000 | 4,456,000 | 85.4% | 18,500,000 | 24.1% | 19,690,000 | 22.6% |
Free claims to be the first profitable ISP in France[4] and to have the lowest subscriber acquisition cost amongst French operators.[70]
The unbundling ratio is one of the key strategic figures:
Because of bandwidth cost,[19] only a subset of the TV services is offered to bundled subscribers; while unbundled subscribers can access value-added services such as VOD and Subscription VOD. These services' revenues are constantly increasing.[39][73]
In 2007, Free had the greatest EBITDA margin of the sector in Europe, was the only actor to gain market share in France and had a debt ratio 10 times lower than the industry average. Thanks to these assets, the initial FTTH deployment (targeted at 2012) will be entirely self-financed by existing activities.[38]
Although investors are concerned about the investments in both the 3G mobile network and an FTTH network (1 billion euros each),[74] the perspectives of Free and of the whole sector in Europe are promising according to analysts.[75]
Year | Slogan (translation) | Original French slogan |
---|---|---|
1999 | Freedom does not have a price | La Liberté n'a pas de Prix |
2007 | Play on words: "It's all included" or, alternatively, "It's all well understood" | C'est tout compris |
2008 | Without doubt the best offer since a long time | Sans doute la meilleure offre depuis bien longtemps |
2009 | He has Free, he has all included (wordplay: all included/understood ) | Il a Free, il a tout compris |
2011 | Feel Free[76] | |
2012 | Thanks Free! | Merci Free ! |
On 3 January 2013 at 4pm in France, Free released a new firmware for its latest modem named "Revolution" which contained an advertisement blocker. The firmware of the modems was updated when rebooting, and the Ad filtering was enabled by default. Within a few hours, Free gained media attention and was strongly criticized by website editors for penalizing them instead of Free's target Google. On 7 January at 8.30am, the Ad filtering was removed before Free ultimately decided, on 17 January at 6pm, to include the Ad filter and disable it by default. However, customers who restarted their modem between 3 and 7 January had enabled the option without even knowing it.
Since Free is one of the biggest ISP in France, worries started to raise of French hosting forums concerning the people's interest into Ad blockers in general.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)