France Telecom (NYSE: FTE), owner of the Orange network, is in talks with Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) to sell the iPhone in other countries, according to the company’s CFO Gervais Pellissier. Dow Jones reports that Pellissier revealed that the discussions were for more than “just two countries.” He also said that France Telecom was “pleased with the success” of the company’s exclusive deal with Apple that has another two and a half years to run—quashing recent rumours that the French group had balked at Apple’s supposed insistence that they slash iPhone prices to boost sales. Pellissier also said that he expected a 3G iPhone to boost sales in France, where Orange has sold over 100,000 of the device.

Yesterday, Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) announced it would be selling the iPhone in ten countries. News later surfaced that its deal in Italy is not an exclusive one, after Telecom Italia announced they too would be selling the device. Thomson Financial, meanwhile, picked up a story today from Portuguese newspaper Diario de Noticias, which reported Tuesday than Vodafone’s Portugal deal is not an exclusive one either, though it did not cite a source. Portuguese networks Portugal Telecom and Sonaecom are reportedly still negotiating with Apple over distributing the iPhone.

In Australia Vodafone declined to say whether the deal to sell the iPhone was exclusive, reports the SMH, and it’s a short jump to the conclusion that it is therefore not exclusive. “Mark Novosel, telecommunications market analyst at IDC, said the fact that Vodafone hasn’t announced whether the deal is exclusive indicates the iPhone will be sold by all carriers…He said it is likely Vodafone will sell the iPhone at a discount and lock it to its network, in which case Apple would sell an unlocked version – capable of running on any carrier – through its own stores.”

Telstra Country Wide Director, Gary Goldsworthy, said Telstra was concerned that some customers may not realise they were on the CDMA mobile network, which will close down at midnight on 28 April 2008.

“It’s vitally important that all mobile customers conduct a health check on their mobile phones in coming days to ensure they aren’t inadvertently using a CDMA service,” Mr Goldsworthy said.

“Despite our repeated attempts to alert customers about the impending CDMA network closure, we’re concerned that some people are ignoring the notification as they don’t even know they are on the CDMA network.

“We are aware that there are a lot of customers who have had their mobile service for years and might not know there is more than one mobile phone network in Australia.

“We also know that many families and businesses pass down their mobiles when they upgrade, so the recipient may not know that they are in fact using a CDMA handset and service,” Mr Goldsworthy said.

Mr Goldsworthy said the easiest way for customers to tell if they are using the CDMA network is to:

* Open the back of their mobile handset and see if it has a SIM card. If the handset doesn’t have a SIM card, then you are using the old CDMA network.
* When the phone is on, check the front screen and see if it says “CDMA”. If it does, then you are using the old CDMA network.

“After 28 April 2008 no one will be able to make or receive mobile calls on the old CDMA network. We are therefore urging customers to perform a quick health check on all their mobile phones, determine if they’re on the CDMA network and quickly upgrade to another network, such as the Telstra Next G” network, if necessary,” Mr Goldsworthy said.

“We understand that some customers may need assistance so the best solution is to visit a Telstra shop or dealer where our staff are on stand-by and ready to offer expert advice and guidance.

“Moving off CDMA and on to the Telstra Next G™ network is simple, but CDMA customers must act now before it’s too late,” Mr Goldsworthy said.

Telstra and Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) have launched the “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” which will be available in stores from tomorrow.

Weighing approximately 89g and measuring just 107mm x 50mm x 14.5mm, the “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” is one of the world’s smallest and lightest smartphones. The “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” is easy-to-use and features support for phone, email, messaging, organiser, web browser and other mobile applications. It also incorporates a digital camera, media player, and expandable memory slot for the first time.

Telstra’s Enterprise and Government Group Managing Director, Mr David Thodey, said Telstra customers would benefit from the national coverage of its EDGE network that was unmatched by its competitors.

“The BlackBerryВ® Pearl” operates on Telstra’s enhanced GPRS network, known as EDGE, which is the largest network of its kind in Australia, reaching more than 96 per cent of the population,” Mr Thodey said. “Telstra’s EDGE network delivers data speeds more than twice as fast as GPRS.

“With the wide adoption and acceptance of BlackBerryВ® as a business communications tool, many of Telstra’s enterprise and government customers are already using BlackBerryВ® for solutions that extend beyond the great email capability of BlackBerryВ®. This helps Telstra’s customers drive even greater productivity and accelerates their return on investment.

“Today many Telstra customers are using BlackBerryВ® to access a variety of applications beyond email, including sales force automation, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), remote network management and dispatch. Telstra also provides fully managed mobility solutions through KAZ Group, Telstra’s ICT and IP services subsidiary.

“Telstra is about offering our customers choice, because we understand that they all have different needs.”

Since September, Telstra began switching on its EDGE network, meaning many existing Telstra customers are also experiencing faster data speeds on their EDGE capable BlackBerryВ® 8700g and BlackBerryВ® 7130g handsets.

“Despite being one of the smallest and lightest smartphones available, the “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” offers the full BlackBerryВ® experience that has become so popular around the world. We’re pleased to be working with Telstra to expand its BlackBerryВ® portfolio to include the highly-acclaimed “BlackBerryВ® Pearl”,” said Norm Lo, Vice President, Asia Pacific for Research In Motion.

Group Managing Director for Telstra Business, Ms Deena Shiff said Telstra was offering its customers access to new applications on the BlackBerryВ® Pearl”.

“Only Telstra customers can access our Business Portal which allows them to download applications on any BlackBerryВ® device, like spell checking, an email preview capability, and the ability to print emails and attachments to any fax machine in the country – all billed to your Telstra Mobile account,” Ms Shiff said.

“Telstra’s BlackBerryВ® Individual Solution customers can also access Sensis’ Whereis” location based technology via one click and unlimited internet browsing on BlackBerryВ® devices at no extra charge.”

Telstra is offering small and medium business customers a new plan to encourage the take up of wireless technology. The Small Business Edition (SBE) software has been dropped from $2,500 to $500 allowing customers to adopt up to 15 “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” smartphones at a lower upfront cost.

The “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” is available with BlackBerryВ® Individual Solution from $99.95 ($60 voice plan and $39.95 for BlackBerry data Plan) per month over 24 months for ‘all-you-can-eat’ email and internet browsing.

The “BlackBerryВ® Pearl” is available at $199 upfront for BlackBerryВ® Enterprise Solution customers taking up a 24 month contract for $89.95 per month. This gives you ‘all-you-can-eat’ wireless email, calendar, contacts and internet browsing.

Telstra customers can also purchase the phone outright for $679 in conjunction with either a BlackBerryВ® Individual Solution or BlackBerryВ® Enterprise Solution.