Orange and Bebo partner to provide mobile social networking

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 28-Mar-07, 14:00

LONDON - Orange has secured a deal with Bebo to run its social networking service on mobile phones in the UK from this summer.

'Bebo Mobile' combines SMS access to the Bebo network and a members-only entertainment club, designed to keep customers in touch with friends when they are away from their computer.

The service will include the same functions found on the website, such as managing personal profiles, adding new friends, uploading photos, updating blogs and viewing other members' profiles.

Sanjiv Ahuja, CEO of Orange, said: "Orange is turning social networking into an 'anytime, anywhere' experience. With Bebo Mobile, the phone is moving from a one-to-one communications device to a complete social networking tool, enabling people to engage in conversations, discover new interests and express themselves in a completely new way."

This is an exclusive deal for Orange for an undisclosed period of time and they plan to roll it out to other Orange operations abroad.

Joanna Shields, international president at Bebo, said: "Bebo users spend more time on Bebo than on any other website, but until today, logging off from the internet also meant logging out of your network. Our partnership with Orange changes this, helping you to stay in touch regardless of where you are."

Users will need a WAP-enabled phone to access the service.

Bebo, a competitor to News Corp-owned MySpace, has 31 million users worldwide and is rated by comScore as the UK's third most engaging website after Google and MSN.