France's internet traffic grows over 10% in 2025
FRANCE 10:53

France's internet traffic grows over 10% in 2025

France's four main ISPs recorded a combined 10.4 percent year-on-year increase in incoming interconnection traffic, reaching 56 Tbps at the end of 2025. The finding is part of Arcep's latest annual report on the state of the internet in the country. While this growth was slightly higher than in the previous two years (+9.2% in 2024 and +7.6% in 2023), it was more than half the levels recorded in 2022 and 2021, when growth rates stood at 21.5 percent and 25.3 percent respectively. For outbound traffic, the i

Bouygues Telecom's eSIM plans for travellers arrive at Havas Voyages branches
FRANCE 08:56

Bouygues Telecom's eSIM plans for travellers arrive at Havas Voyages branches

French operator Bouygues Telecom, through its Value Factory business line, has announced a new distribution partnership for its range of eSIM plans for travellers. Dubbed InternationalSIM, the offering was revamped in 2025 and covers more than 200 travel destinations. It is now available in nearly 190 branches across the Havas Voyages network of travel agencies, which also includes the Auchan Voyages brand. The launch follows an initial pilot phase that started in April at a small number of selected points

HubOne deploys Ribbon's PSX call routing engine to unify voice traffic
FRANCE 08:22

HubOne deploys Ribbon's PSX call routing engine to unify voice traffic

French ICT group Hub One, part of the airport conglomerate ADP, has expanded its partnership with Ribbon Communications to improve customer experience across different voice environments. Ribbon has been selected to deploy its PSX centralized policy service, providing a core call routing engine for Hub One's entire voice traffic. These capabilities will deliver a competitive advantage, particularly when onboarding customers migrating their communication systems, said the ICT group.

Iliad's Free discounts YouTube Premium in time-limited promo
FRANCE 16 JUL

Iliad's Free discounts YouTube Premium in time-limited promo

French operator Free has launched a new promotion for new and existing fixed and mobile customers, which offers a discounted rate for YouTube Premium following a first-month free trial of the platform. The initiative is available until the end of September and reduces the monthly subscription fee to EUR 9.99 from the standard price of EUR 12.99. To sign up for this offer, customers are required to have a Google account and pay for the service via direct carrier billing through Free.

France to scrutinise takeover of SFR, review to last at least 18 months
FRANCE 16 JUL

France to scrutinise takeover of SFR, review to last at least 18 months

The French competition watchdog has been designated as the competent authority to scrutinise the proposed takeover of SFR by rivals Bouygues Telecom, Iliad's Free and Orange. Following a request made by Iliad, the European Commission said that it has agreed to refer the review of the deal to France under the referral mechanism set out in EU regulation. Announcing this development, the French watchdog indicated that the assessment will be complex and last at least eighteen months, pointing out that it will i

French city selects Axione in new public-initiative data centre project
FRANCE 14 JUL

French city selects Axione in new public-initiative data centre project

French infrastructure operator Axione announced a new contract to run a soon-to-be-built data centre that will be located near the city of Pau, in the department of Pyrenees-Atlantiques. This municipality had previously partnered with Axione to deploy an open-access fibre network available to all commercial operators, which has already been completed. It has now decided to invest EUR 3 million of public funds to expand its local data centre capabilities by building a new site scheduled for completion in aut

French telecom service revenues down 2% in Q1 as mobile ARPU downward trend persists
FRANCE 13 JUL

French telecom service revenues down 2% in Q1 as mobile ARPU downward trend persists

Telecom service revenues in France declined for a fifth consecutive quarter in the three months to March, following a period of nearly four years of continuous growth. According to telecom regulator Arcep, the market generated EUR 8.06 billion across fixed, mobile and value-added services, down 2.2 percent year-on-year after a 2.3 percent drop in the previous quarter. In the fixed segment, service revenues recorded a modest drop for the fourth quarter running, declining 0.7 percent to EUR 4.37 billion (-0.9

TF1 hails positive start to Netflix distribution deal
FRANCE 10 JUL

TF1 hails positive start to Netflix distribution deal

TF1, France's leading commercial broadcaster, said that the arrival of TF1+ content on the Netflix platform has exceeded expectations. In a statement, CEO Rodolphe Belmer indicated that the audience targeted within an eighteen-month period had already been reached less than three weeks after the start of the distribution partnership. This positive effect was evident in the first week following the launch on Netflix, when TF1+ content achieved a 16 percent increase in daily unique streamers.

Bouygues Telecom, SFR secure regulatory approval for amendments to 'Crozon' agreement
FRANCE 10 JUL

Bouygues Telecom, SFR secure regulatory approval for amendments to 'Crozon' agreement

France's telecom authority Arcep said that it has raised no objections to a number of amendments submitted by Bouygues Telecom and SFR with regard to their so-called 'Crozon' network sharing agreement, originally signed in 2014. The changes in question concern technical and operational processes, including the planned integration of new QoS (Quality of Service) indicators. The network sharing elements of the agreement remain the same.

France launches call for projects to support 6G standardisation
FRANCE 10 JUL

France launches call for projects to support 6G standardisation

The French government has announced that the 'France 2030' multi-billion euro investment programme will provide funding for projects that can strengthen the country's participation in international efforts towards 6G standardisation. This latest call for projects, managed by French state-owned bank Bpifrance, will close on 15 January 2027, with interim deadlines during the last four months of the current year.

Meta ordered to engage in good faith negotiations with French news publishers
FRANCE 9 JUL

Meta ordered to engage in good faith negotiations with French news publishers

Two French organisations representing news publishers have secured the enforcement of interim measures against Meta in a dispute over remuneration for the re-use of their content on Meta's platforms. France's competition authority sided with news publishers by ordering Meta to engage in good faith negotiations and provide the two organisations with information enabling an objective assessment of the remuneration due to them under copyright law. The ruling follows a complaint filed by APIG (Alliance de la pr

Bouygues Telecom integrates Gemini AI assistant into b.tv streaming dongle
FRANCE 9 JUL

Bouygues Telecom integrates Gemini AI assistant into b.tv streaming dongle

French operator Bouygues Telecom said that it is gradually rolling out Google's Gemini AI assistant for customers equipped with the latest version of the b.tv dongle. This streaming device, which gives access to the operator's IPTV platform, is currently sold on the Bouygues website for EUR 69.99. Gemini for TV can be activated by users via a dedicated microphone button on the remote control that comes with the device. This development is part of Bouygues' efforts to embed AI innovations into TV services an

FRANCE 8 JUL

Orange France clears audit into non-discriminatory access to fibre infrastructure

French telecom authority Arcep has published the results of a technical audit on the operational processes put in place by Orange to give rivals access to its fibre infrastructure. Part of Arcep's regular monitoring activities, the audit aims to ensure that all third parties are given the right to use IT systems, tools and processes that are non-discriminatory, follow equivalent rules, and deliver the same turnaround times. The regulator concluded that Orange passed the audit with overall satisfactory resul

FRANCE 8 JUL

Bouygues Telecom joins IXP provider Nine in France

Nine, a France-based Internet Exchange Point (IXP) with a European presence, has announced the arrival of a new member on its platform. Joining a community that counts over 140 organisations, French operator Bouygues Telecom is now connected with a 400 Gbps port at a PoP in Paris (Equinix PA3). Nine's platform has already attracted several French and international operators including Orange Business, OVHcloud, Sewan, SFR, Iliad's cloud subsidiary Scaleway and Zayo.

FRANCE 8 JUL

Orange receives bids for minority stake in French data centre activities - report

Orange is pursuing the sale of a minority stake in the business that operates its data centres in France, according to information gathered by L'informe. This operation would support the group's strategic priorities by raising capital for planned AI investments. Among the candidates involved in the bidding process, New Zealand-based infrastructure asset manager Morrison is reportedly favoured over rivals Vauban Infrastructure Partners and Macquarie. Orange, which has declined to comment on the matter, took

FRANCE 8 JUL

Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ challenge new French streaming investment rule in court

Three leading SVoD platforms have decided to challenge a new rule enacted from January by the French government with regard to investment quotas in local content productions, reports Franceinfo. Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Disney+ are individually seeking the invalidation of this rule, under which they must earmark 20 percent of their contribution to the so-called 'Smad' fund for three specific content genres, namely animation, documentaries and live performances. The challenge was brought at the Frenc

FRANCE 7 JUL

SFR lowers price of 5G Box offers in revamped portfolio

French operator SFR has reduced the monthly rates within its 5G Box portfolio, following the price cuts introduced by rival Bouygues Telecom in late June. This 5G-powered broadband service for residential customers is now available for EUR 32.99 in the basic tier without TV equipment, down by EUR 7 per month compared with the earlier price. As before, this subscription includes an unlimited call allowance and access to the SFR TV mobile app.

FRANCE 6 JUL

French supreme court rejects challenge to Amazon satellite licence

France's supreme court, the Conseil d'Etat, has dismissed a case brought by French trade union CFE-CGC Telecom seeking the invalidation of the ten-year licence awarded to Amazon Kuiper Services Europe by regulator Arcep. The latter granted the company a first authorisation a year ago and later published a draft decision for consultation amending the licence terms with additional rights. The court concluded that the trade union representatives had failed to bring sufficient arguments to support their case, i

FRANCE 6 JUL

Samsung's latest Galaxy Watch and Buds models arrive at Decathlon in France

Samsung said it has strengthened its presence with French distribution partner Decathlon through the arrival of its latest Galaxy Watch and Buds models. The sports retailer, which operates more than 325 stores in France, has started selling the Galaxy Watch8, Galaxy Buds4 Pro and Galaxy Buds3 FE both online and across its retail footprint. Samsung highlighted that this partnership gives shoppers more opportunities to discover the health-focused innovations integrated into the Galaxy Watch8, including the ab

FRANCE 3 JUL

Bouygues Telecom ramps up 5G site activations in 2.1 GHz band during June

French operator Bouygues Telecom focused its 5G deployment activities on 2.1 GHz frequencies during June, with 405 additional cell sites using this band month-on-month (+131 during May). According to spectrum agency ANFR, this brought the number of 2.1 GHz sites within Bouygues' 5G network to 18,609 as of 01 July. In comparison, SFR had a 12,375-strong footprint, while Orange and Free Mobile remained at a distance, with 3,522 and 41 sites respectively active on 2.1 GHz frequencies.

FRANCE 3 JUL

Arcep issues guidelines to support freedom of choice in cloud services

French telecom regulator Arcep has published two sets of guidelines as part of its mission to help customers of cloud hosting services switch provider and adopt a multi-cloud environment. This follows a public consultation process launched in mid-February to gather stakeholders' views on Arcep's proposals. The guidelines aim to clarify what can be considered justifiable costs when determining switching charges other than data transfer (egress) fees, and when calculating data transfer fees in the specific ca

FRANCE 1 JUL

Canal Plus bundles best content in EUR 30/month RAT+ offer for under-26 sign-ups

French pay-TV operator Canal Plus has introduced a new version of its RAT+ discounted bundle reserved for sign-ups aged under 26. Dubbed RAT+ La Totale, this new option is priced at EUR 29.99 per month, with a single access included and no minimum contract period. The Canal Plus website describes this package as a combination of the best sport, cinema and TV series available on the platform, in HD quality and Dolby 5.1 sound.

FRANCE 1 JUL

Music Box inks first distribution deal in France with Iliad's Free

Music Box, which operates a portfolio of linear music channels in Europe and Africa, has announced its expansion in the French market following a distribution deal with Iliad subsidiary Free. The agreement covers one curated music channel, Music Box Classic, available as part of Free's entry-level IPTV offering, as well as a paid-for Music Box package including six additional channels featuring tracks from the 80s, 90s and 00s, timeless classics, trendy hits and dance tunes. This bundle is currently priced

FRANCE 1 JUL

Iliad's Free Mobile taps Younited to offer financing plans for Apple watches

French operator Free Mobile, part of the Iliad group, has launched financing plans for Apple watches through its physical store footprint, reports Universefreebox. This follows a collaboration with French fintech start-up Younited Credit, which has already provided Free with its online lending expertise. The operator said that existing mobile customers could be eligible for "the best offer of the market" when purchasing the Apple Watch SE 3 Cellular model. The cost of the device, currently EUR 299, can be s

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Background

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5 JUL 23:03

The week in telecom: Comcast gives up on vertical integration, BT and Verizon agree global alliance

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28 JUN 23:51

The week in telecoms: Apple raises prices, Qualcomm tries server market and Jio going public