The Story of the Cellular Phone Brand Orange

Contd...

Said a France Telecom official, "We are likely to retain the brand for this part of the world. A final decision is likely to be taken early next year". Analysts felt that the Orange takeover could come as a severe blow to Hutchison in Mumbai, as the company could lose its leading position in this market. Hutchison would have to re-invest huge amounts in building up a new brand and giving it the same level of credibility that Orange enjoyed.

Analysts also felt that Hutchison, which had controlling stakes in cellular operators in other circles like Delhi, Calcutta and Gujarat, would have to develop a new brand for these circles.⁶ The company might be hit particularly hard in Delhi, the second largest cellular market in the country. The Hutchison Group had initially planned to launch the Orange brand in Delhi, in May 2000, through its 49 per cent holding in Sterling Cellular.

This was later delayed to October 2000. It became clear that the Orange launch in Delhi had run into rough weather. Sudarshan Banerjee, CEO, Sterling Cellular, agreed that there was a delay in the Orange launch in the Capital, but attributed it to an expansion in its network.

He Said, "We might launch Orange some time next year in Delhi." The Orange brand was also to be launched in Kolkata, where The Hutchison Group held 49 per cent in Usha Martin.

But France Telecom, the foreign equity partner of Hutchison's Mumbai rival, BPL, seemed to be raising objections over the use of the Orange brand name outside the Mumbai circle.

Sandip Das (Das), Chief Operating Officer (COO), Orange, claiming he was ignorant about France Telecom opposing the launch of the brand in other cities. He commented, "It was upto the equity partners in the New Delhi and Calcutta ventures to decide on whether to launch Orange or not."

The Story of the Cellular Phone Brand Orange - Next Page >>>

6] In December 1999, Hutchison picked up 49% stake in Delhi's Sterling Cellular (the rest was held by Essar Group)
and an equal stake in Calcutta's Usha Martin Telecom. In late 2000, Hutchison also picked up a stake in Fascel, the
Hinduja promoted mobile services company in Gujarat through an undisclosed equity partnership.

Case Details

Case Code : BSTR002
Themes: Brand Management
Case Length : 8 Pages
Period : 1995-2001
Organization : Hutchison Telecom, BPL
Pub Date : 2001
Teaching Note : Available
Countries : India
Industry : Telecommunications

Free Case Studies

Business Strategy
Finance
HRM
Insurance
IT and Systems
Marketing
Operations
Leadership
More Case Studies >>

Micro Case Studies

Business Environment
Business Ethics
Business Strategy
Human Resource Management
IT and Systems
Marketing
Operations
Micro Case Studies >>

Free Resources

Micro Case Studies
Case Studies
Articles
Interviews
Book Reviews
Glossary
Online Quiz
More Free Resources >>

Case Related Links

Best Selling Case Studies
Business Case Studies
Learning With Case Studies
Cases Used in Textbooks
Prize Winning Case Studies
Business Updates
More Case Studies >>

Case Studies and Management Resources