Orange to offer broadband network through British Telecoms

France Telecom's Orange has struck a deal to offer broadband services via BT's network in Britain to increase its coverage and improve its Internet offering.                                           

As part of the same deal, British Telecoms carrier BT will take over Orange's existing fixed-line infrastructure, which currently covers about 65% of the population, and incorporate it into its own network.                                           

Orange, which is merging with Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile in Britain, will then provide customers with broadband products via BT.                                           

A spokesman for Orange said BT would manage the broadband service and Orange could then use the funds it had been spending on the network infrastructure to invest in marketing and customer services.                                           

The move will extend Orange's fixed-line coverage across the whole of the UK and allow it to better compete with rivals BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk.