Luxembourg Telecom becomes Telecom Luxembourg S.A.
Press article - by Virginie Daunois
The alternative and private operator changes its name, but keeps its identity.
Luxembourg, April 28th 2011 - Following a law suit brought on by the "Etablissement de droit public autonome ENTREPRISE DES POSTES ET TELECOMMUNICATIONS” (hereafter EPT) against the private company LUXEMBOURG TELECOM S.A., claiming that their corporate name and trade name constitute an act of unfair competition and misleading advertising, the Luxembourgish private operator has been denied use of the sign “Luxembourg TELECOM” and its variable “LUXTELECOM,” in its operating activities on the sole purpose of misleading advertising.
As a result of this decision from the Appeal Court, LUXEMBOURG TELECOM S.A. has decided to change its name to TELECOM LUXEMBOURG S.A. and appeal the case to “Cassation court”.
“We don’t understand this court decision accusing us of misleading advertising,” claims Jérôme Grandidier, CEO of Telecom Luxembourg S.A. “We are a private operator oriented towards the professional market. We consider ourselves as an alternative operator, thus complementary to the EPT, and we have always positioned ourselves as a private actor within the market”.
The appeal to the “Cassation court” is aimed to show this decision not only goes against all the main competition principles between public and private actors, but also against the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector and the European treaties. Besides, such jurisprudence could be detrimental to the numerous companies containing the words “Luxembourg” or “Lux” in their name, as they could also be sued for misleading advertising.
Healthy competition in a liberalised market
“Market competition and liberalisation are essential for the competitiveness of a country and its economy, whatever sector is concerned,” explains Jean-Claude Bintz, Chairman of the Board. “This is especially true here, since every company using data and Internet connections must rely on two strong operators to ensure redundancy. In the past, the situation of monopoly within the market has discouraged big international players to enter Luxembourg. It is in the interest of the country to support private initiatives, especially when they are supported by local investors”, he adds.
An operator rapidly expanding
Since its launch as an operator, Telecom Luxembourg S.A. has experienced significant growth, which demonstrate high quality service and an attractive offering. In this context and in order to face the upcoming challenges, the company has reinforced its management team:
- Jean-Claude Bintz, founder of Tango and VOXmobile, has been appointed Chairman of the Board of Telecom Luxembourg S.A.
- Vincent Nicolay, the current COO, has been appointed Director of Telecom Luxembourg S.A.
- Philippe Bruneton, previously COO and Senior Partner at Deloitte, has been appointed to the position of CFO of Telecom Luxembourg S.A.
About Telecom Luxembourg S.A.:
Telecom Luxembourg S.A. is a private Luxembourgish operator. The company offers a large range of services including access to datacenters, high-speed connectivity networks operating on a fiber-optic infrastructure, as well as numerous other managed services oriented towards professional customers and international telecom operators.
For more information, please visit our website www.telecomluxembourg.com
Contact Virginie Daunois by phone (+352) 44 64 82 or by mail : vdaunois@telecomluxembourg.com
Aussi disponible sur www.itone.lu.
