Apple and Orange cut broadband Mac deal

By Matt Chapman on Dec 19, 2006 9:17 AM
Filed under Telco/ISP

French offer of 1Mbps connection and MacBook for €2 ($3.35) a day.

Apple has joined forces with French telco Orange to offer a package of broadband Internet and computer hire to French consumers.

The two firms plan to hire out a MacBook laptop and provide a 1Mbps broadband connection for just €2 ($3.35) a day.

Apple and Orange hope that the €60 ($100) a month deal will appeal to younger French citizens who do not typically buy microcomputers or subscribe to broadband Internet services.

Apple will take €35 ($59) of the €60 fee to cover the €418 ($701) cost of the entry-level MacBook and the technical support. A faster 8Mbps connection will be available for an extra €5 ($8.40) a month.

Users can sign up for the service on the Orange website and in 12 France Telecom shops until 17 January.

MacBooks provided as part of the deal will initially be hired for three years, although Orange said that the contract may change to a hire-purchase option after six months.

The two companies hope to provide around 1,000 MacBooks per month over the first six months.

Louis-Pierre Wenes, head of group transformation and French operations at Orange, told Le Figaro that the French initiative could be extended to other European countries if successful.