The founder of Free, Xavier Niel, got carried away during his hearing before the Economic Committee of the Senate, highlighting the tensions between telecom operators in France and the difficulty of finding a balance between competitive prices for consumers and the operator profitability.
Xavier Niel, founder of Iliad, made a remarkable exit during his hearing before the Senate’s Economic Affairs Committee. He accused Arcep, the telecoms policeman, of making a “financial transfer” to Orange by considering a measure that would allow the incumbent to raise the prices of unbundling, the rent that Orange’s competitors must pay for access its copper network.
This measure would be seen as a gift made to Orange by Arcep to support it in the transition from the end of the copper network. Xavier Niel denounces an Arcep that sets in front of Orange » and lambasted Christel Heydemann, the director general of Orange, for having referred to his « deal with Arcep “.
The regulator has published its “ project to change the regulation of fixed broadband and very high-speed markets for the 2024-2028 cycle at the end of February, in which he envisages a measure allowing Orange to raise the prices of unbundling, subject to compliance with a ” obligation of non-excessiveness “. The measure must be put in place to accompany the extinction of the copper network operated by Orange. As a reminder, the ADSL network must disappear by 2030. Xavier Niel considers that this deadline is far too far away.
Free does not move its prices, despite inflation
In addition to attacking Arcep and Orange, he also got carried away when a senator questioned him on the sustainability of the tariffs of his operator Free. Senator Patrick Chaize questioned Xavier Niel on Free’s promise not to increase its prices, despite generalized inflation among all operators, and on the reality of this promise. Xavier Niel replied vehemently that Free’s extremely low prices were part of its strengths and what it brought to the French.
I’m just doing my job https://t.co/Tw0Jqa3ktf
— Xavier Niel (@Xavier75) March 23, 2023
This media release by Xavier Niel highlights the tensions between telecom operators in France and the difficulty of finding a balance between competitive prices for consumers and the profitability of operators. The founder of Free also recalled the importance of competition in the telecoms market in France and the need to maintain it to guarantee affordable prices for consumers.
The anger of Xavier Niel, the founder of Free, can also be interpreted as a free communication strategy for the brand. Indeed, by opposing other operators and defending an aggressive pricing policy, Xavier Niel highlights Free’s main advantage: attractive and competitive prices for consumers. His diatribe before the Senate’s Economic Committee also helps to highlight the operator’s offers, to remind the public of them and to draw media attention to Free. This aggressive communication strategy has already been used in the past by Xavier Niel and has proven its effectiveness in increasing operator awareness.
Fibre
Bbox fit Fibre
Débit jusqu’à 400 Mb/s
Sans Player TV
Téléphonie vers 110 destinations
Fibre, Câble
SFR Fibre Starter
Débit jusqu’à 500 Mb/s
160 chaînes de TV incluses
Téléphonie vers 100 destinations
Fibre, Câble
RED box Fibre
Débit jusqu’à 500 Mb/s
Sans Player TV
Téléphonie vers 100 destinations
Toutes les box internet
RED 4G Package
160 GB
Unlimited calls
160 GB in France
23 GB in Europe
Pricetel 4G package
Oxygen 20 to 60 GB
Unlimited calls
20 GB – 60 GB in France
15 GB in Europe
Coriolis 5G Mobile Plan
210 GB
Unlimited calls
210 GB in France
25 in Europe
All mobile plans
To follow us, we invite you to download our Android and iOS application. You can read our articles, files, and watch our latest YouTube videos.