Orange launches flat rates for global calls

Mobile phone service Orange, due to publish its flotation prospectus tomorrow, has unveiled what it claims are the first ever set of flat rates for global calling.

Mobile phone service Orange, due to publish its flotation prospectus tomorrow, has unveiled what it claims are the first ever set of flat rates for global calling.

Orange says that from February 1, customers making international calls or using their phones abroad will be charged a simple fixed rate, making it easier to work out how much each call costs.

The company has divided the world into five zones and fixed each type of call within them at one price, no matter what time of day or night a call is made. The rates will not vary according to whether a customer dials a landline or a mobile phone number.

A call to any of the five zones - Ireland, Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand, and rest of the world - from Australia will cost 70p a minute, while a call from the UK to North America is 15p a minute.

The new charges are being made available to Orange's Talk Plan customers at no extra cost. They only have to ensure their phone can be used abroad.

Orange is forecast to have another deal for the general public tomorrow, when it publishes its flotation prospectus.

Press reports suggest Orange is thinking of offering private investors a 5% discount to the price set by institutional buyers. Such a discount would probably make the minimum investment for private investors less than £500.

According to The Sunday Telegraph, more than 400,000 British private investors have pre-registered for shares. This strong demand compares to attempts by institutional investors to drive down the company's valuation.

Against this negative backdrop, Orange is expected to be valued at 60-65 billion euros, which is around £41billion, when it floats off up to 15% of the company.

Owners France Telecom are hopeful the flotation will value the firm, which includes all the French group's other mobile interests, at up to 150 billion euros, which is around £96billion.

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