Iliad signed 3G roaming agreement with France Telecom

France's fourth 3G operator will enter the market March 3, French internet service provider Iliad and France's leading telecom operator France Telecom signed a roaming agreement.　　Under the agreement, France Telecom will provide the Iliad 3G network access, which Iliad in 2012 to enter the French mobile market to remove the biggest obstacle. This 3G roaming protocol is critical to Iliad.　　Iliad, which won France's fourth 3G licence in 2009, plans to launch its own mobile business in 2012, gaining access to the French telecoms network, enabling it to provide users with faster data services based on smartphones before their own network is fully operational.　　At the same time, the 3G roaming agreement will also generate 1 billion euros of revenue for France Telecom in the next 6 years. France Telecom, SFR and Bouygues Telecom, the existing 3 mobile operators in France, had been reluctant to negotiate 3G roaming with Iliad, which had promised to slash mobile-phone tariffs.　　With the pace of Iliad's foray into the French mobile market, competition among France's 3 mobile operators has grown in recent months. The agreement will take effect when the Iliad mobile network covers 25% of France's population.　　Free mobile promises to make its mobile network cover at least 90% of France's population by 2018. French telecoms regulator Arcep said the deal would inject new energy into the French telecoms market.