Innovation is central to Orange's strategy for Africa, says Marc Rennard, Orange's international executive director for Africa, the Middle East and Asia (AMEA).
He was speaking at an Orange press briefing, during the AfricaCom event, in Cape Town, this week.
Rennard said AMEA is a strategic region for the France Telecom Group, with Orange having a presence in 19 countries in the Middle East Africa area, with 55 million customers. The region provided EUR3.4 billion in revenue for the group in 2009.
The company's activity is focused on three areas: providing voice and SMS, developing Internet access and promoting access to content, and providing access to financial services on mobile phones.
Voice and SMS accounts for 95% of the current revenue for this geographic area, Rennard says.
Orange has introduced a line of low-cost handsets and a range of services such as 'Call me back, Pay for me' and voice SMS for the illiterate.
Regarding Internet access developments, Rennard pointed to the laying of the Lion submarine cable last year, between Madagascar and the mainland of Africa, as well as the ACE cable. The latter is being laid between Europe and various landing locations in Africa, including SA, and should go live at the end of 2011, or the beginning of 2012.
To focus on financial services on the mobile platform, Orange Mobile has been created - it provides a range of services for people who do not have access to traditional banking functions.
At the briefing, Orange announced the establishment of an Orange Technocentre, in Abidjan, later this year, which will be the hub for innovation in the region and will bolster existing teams in Egypt and Jordan. Orange plans to employ 100 individuals by the end of 2011, and 200 by the end of 2015.
The telco has also launched HD Voice, in Cairo, the second such initiative following the initial one in Moldova.
Orange Money has been unveiled in Kenya and will debut in Uganda in a few weeks to add to the growing list of countries on the continent for this facility.
At AfricaCom, Orange won the “the best solution for rural services” for its Village Phone project, and Orange Tunisia was named “the best new entrant of the year”.
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