Orange Boss Revels in Recent Successes

The CEO of British mobile operator Orange scored two coups in September—rights to the iPhone and a merger with T-Mobile—and he's pumped

By Nick Clark

As Jenson Button was securing the Formula One world championship last weekend, it was hard for Tom Alexander not to feel a pang. Orange's chief executive is a racer at heart, who always saw a job in industry as a stop-gap. "I really identify with Jenson," he says. Both are Somerset lads with a thirst for speed, and both were crowned European karting champion.

Mr. Alexander now looks to set the pace in the mobile industry, after his racing career stalled. "It is very tough. Only a few make it," he said.

While he still uses competitive racing as a way to relax, recently the day job has been getting in the way of his passion. Mr. Alexander pulled out of the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July at the last minute, saying he was "too distracted" to compete. No wonder. He was in the latter stages of brokering a deal to break O2's hold on the iPhone as well as masterminding the tie-up with T-Mobile UK (DT); a merger that would create the leading mobile operator in the country.

Mr. Alexander is more relaxed as he talks through a momentous month in the company's history, with the iPhone win at the end of September still fresh. "We are already benefiting from the mystique and PR machine of Apple (AAPL)," he said.

It is understood that half a million customers have already registered to snap up the device when it becomes available in the next few months. "I was gobsmacked how many people signed up straight away," Mr. Alexander said. Secret negotiations to secure the device had been going on from "a very early stage" in Mr. Alexander's reign, he admitted, adding the deal had been "in the bag" for months. He said: "When I first came to Orange, O2 (TEF) had just signed the exclusive deal for the iPhone in the UK. I was always keen to get it, I saw it as a crucial development."

The timing of the announcement seems no coincidence as Orange builds momentum going into the Christmas season. O2 has sold more than a million iPhones since the device launched exclusively on its network in the UK in November 2007. Opening it up to Orange—and Vodafone (VOD) next year—will almost certainly spark a price war. Orange believes the strength of its wireless network, which is one of the most comprehensive in the UK, will also prove critical to luring customers.

As someone who helped to mass market mobiles during the 1990s at Virgin Mobile, Mr. Alexander clearly believes the next revolution will be the mass adoption of smartphones, such as the iPhone, which combine voice and texting with internet services, email and applications. Smartphone sales have grown in the downturn, at a time when the operators have remained resilient. With 409 million smartphones sold between April and June, they only accounted for 14.3 per cent of sales, but sales are growing.

"This Christmas will be a key push in the smartphone market, with the iPhone 3GS at its core. Many more people will go and get them. If it wasn't for the recession the smartphone revolution would have already happened." Mr. Alexander said.

Getting the bit between his teeth, he moves on to a subject close to his heart; the mobile phone as an instrument for change. "The mobile has changed society around the world. And we're on the edge of the next evolutionary or even revolutionary step," he said: "These devices will change society and being part of that is hugely motivating."

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