Simyo is a brand for various

mobile virtual network operators A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile ...

(MVNOs) in Europe. In the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, it is owned by

KPN KPN (in full Koninklijke KPN N.V., also Royal KPN N.V.) is a Dutch landline and mobile telecommunications company. KPN originated from a government-run postal, telegraph and telephone service and is based in Rotterdam, Netherlands. History Un ...

. In Spain, it is owned by

Orange España Orange Espagne S.A.U., more commonly known by its trade name of Orange España, is a mobile network operator in Spain. It was previously known as Amena, a brand of Retevisión, until 2005, when it was bought by France Télécom (now Orange S.A. ...

. The brand previously was active in France (owned by

Bouygues Bouygues S.A. () is a French industrial group headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Bouygues is listed on the Euronext, Euronext Paris exchange and is a blue chip (stock market), blue chip in the C ...

, discontinued in 2015), in Germany (owned by Telefonica, discontinued in 2016, replaced by Blau), and Belgium (owned by KPN, discontinued in 2017).

History

The company was founded in May 2005 as a joint-venture with E-Plus. Its headquarters are in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

led by Nicolas Biagosch, the current CEO. The success of the pioneer

Tchibo Tchibo is a German chain of coffee retailers and cafés known for its range of non-coffee products that change weekly. The latter includes: clothing, furniture, household items, electronics and electrical appliances. In Germany, Tchibo's slogan i ...

late 2004 (in a 50-50 cooperation with O2) and Simyo's entry into the German mobile telephony market in early 2005 were followed by several similar offers from other low-cost providers around mid-2005 resulting in a general price decline in the German mobile market. The German provider Mobilcom first tried to stop Simyo with an injunction, as E-Plus hadn't granted the same conditions to other providers and hadn't given sufficient notice about the start of the mobile offering. The

Federal Network Agency The Federal Network Agency (german: Bundesnetzagentur or ) is the German regulatory office for electricity, gas, telecommunications, post and railway markets. It is a federal agency of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Acti ...

decided this case on 12 July 2005 in favor of Simyo, and justified this by saying that: :"The simyo offer was not simply a new tariff, but a new product. In light of its commercial, technical and marketing philosophy which has renounced costly, hitherto widely found features, it differed in essential details from conventional prepaid products." In Germany, it was marketed with the slogan "Weil Einfach einfach einfach ist.", notable for its word repetition. It roughly translates into "because simple is simply simple" or "because easy is simply easy". On 3 January 2007, E-Plus announced the complete takeover of Simyo. Simyo does not own a wireless network but, as an MVNO, uses the network infrastructure of its parent company. In May 2010, Nicolas Biagosch took over as CEO from Rolf Hansen. Simyo is part of the

E-Plus E-Plus was a mobile telecommunications operator in Germany. With more than 25 million subscribers, E-Plus was the third largest mobile operator in Germany, until the takeover from Telefónica Germany in October, 2014. Ownership E-Plus was o ...

Group which has 22.7 million subscribers (Dec 2011). Simyo belongs to the Dutch telecommunications group

, after acquisition of the remainder of E-Plus on March 14. 2002. In Spain, Simyo has been operating under the trade name of Simyo as an

MVNO A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile ...

since January 29, 2008 through the

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

network. KPN sold its stake in Simyo France on December 22, 2011 to Bouygues Telecom, KPN's main mobile partner in France. KPN lost control of the German Simyo operations in 2014 when it sold E-Plus to Telefonica, although it retained a financial investment in

Telefónica Germany Telefónica Germany GmbH & Co. OHG (; also called Telefónica Deutschland ) is a provider of broadband, landline and mobile telecommunications in Germany. The company trades as O2 (typeset as O2). The company was renamed from Telefónica O ...

. Simyo bases its business strategy on "Self-management via the Internet", using a model similar to that originally made popular by online banks. This business structure permits considerable cost savings, which the operator passes on in its rates. Another aspect that helps to cut costs is that they do not subsidise handsets.

Simyo Nederland

Simyo Nederland acquired customers from Debitel (October 23, 2008) and Tringg (May 14, 2011)KPN koopt mobiele aanbieder Tringg – Emerce
/ref> when KPN acquired these stakes in the Netherlands.

References

External links

Simyo NetherlandsSimyo Spain
{{Belgian mobile operators KPN Mobile virtual network operators Mobile phone companies of the Netherlands Mobile phone companies of Belgium Mobile phone companies of Germany Mobile phone companies of Spain Dutch brands Telecommunications companies established in 2005