Gossip

Out of stock of SPVs? Could Orange be about to launch the Tanager?

You will, of course, remember that the Microsoft vs Sendo legal battle was escalated last week, when Sendo brought Orange into the ring, for selling a phone which breached the Sendo patents on the Z100? Well, guess what Orange has done!

Actually, Sniffer is guessing, too.

But take a look at Orange.co.uk and click on the "shop" section. Looks like they're out of stock of SPVs.

Now, that strikes the Hunky Mouse as very odd; because only two months ago, Orange was saying that it didn't think it would be launching the updated SPV, the SPV-x - otherwise known as the Tanager. Instead, it said would wait for the Smartphone 2003 (or Smartphone 2004, even if it slips any further!) next year. And the reason given? "We have far too many Canary models in stock."

Was this dead cunning? Was it a ploy to encourage people to "buy now, don't wait for the Tanager!"?

Or has Orange responded to the Sendo lawsuit by finding an out-of-country buyer for the "Canary" model which is now out of stock?

We may not know for sure; but watch for an announcement. We could see the Tanager launched, very soon, in the UK - and France, perhaps? If they do launch in France, does that mean that Sendo hasn't launched its suit there?