Orange sets out innovation strategy at Show Hello event

Orange set out its ‘inclusive innovation’ strategy at its Show Hello event in Paris yesterday, highlighting connected home innovations like its forthcoming Djingo smart speaker and detailing its 5G rollout plans.

Orange said that 5G is gradually being deployed on existing 4G sites and will be installed in 17 European cities in 2019 and ready for commercial release in 2020 – as long as 5G smartphones are available at this point.

On the device front, Orange said its Djingo smart speaker will be available in all Orange stores by spring 2019. Developed with Deutsche Telekom as part of the European AI Alliance, the speaker is voice-controlled and will be able to interact with Orange TV and the company’s Connected Home services.

The Djingo speaker will comes with both Orange’s Djingo voice assistant technology and Amazon Alexa built in. Orange said that it shares a common vision with Amazon where multiple AIs complement each other and said it looks forward to expanding their multi-assistant integration in future products.

Orange also announced that in spring 2019, in its home market of France, its Connected Home customers will be able to link connected objects to the home’s Livebox to manage them remotely, control their use and analyse their consumption through a single app accessible via a smartphone or, in the future, a TV.

“To fight digital exclusion, Orange chooses inclusive innovation: useful and simple innovations that are accessible to the greatest possible number of people,” said Orange Group chairman and CEO, Stéphane Richard.

“To do so, we deploy the best fixed and mobile networks across the country. We secure and facilitate our customers’ digital lives thanks to our expertise in cybersecurity and in digital identity. We help all our customers enter the eras of artificial intelligence and of the internet of things. All of this, to enable them to participate in a new form of digital society. A progressive, free and enlightened society.”