Belgacom becomes Proximus

Belgacom, the partly state-owned telecommunications company, will in future be known as Proximus, currently the brand name of its mobile telephony subsidiary, CEO Dominique Leroy has announced. The transformation should be complete by the end of the year, with Proximus encompassing all of Belgacom’s services – digital TV, internet, customer service and more.

The brand will introduce a new logo, and Belgacom has budgeted €20 million for the marketing of the new brand. “Our ambition is to grow,” said Leroy. “That’s why we want to combine our fixed, mobile and IT solutions even more effectively, with the customer at the centre. With Proximus as our main commercial brand, we get that idea across clearly and we also simplify our communications.”

The company, however, will still operate legally under the name Belgacom SV/NV. Other affiliates, such as low-cost ISP Scarlet, international network management company BICS and corporate network manager Telindus, will be unaffected.

Belgacom and Proximus have always scored well in public opinion surveys for brand recognition and customer satisfaction. Proximus has, however, always scored slightly better, and to entire generations of young adults and youth, the name is associated with their first experiences with mobile phones.

The new brand, with one name and logo, will be less expensive to manage; with a target savings of €100 million between now and 2018, Leroy has seized on one opportunity to save money while refreshing the company’s image in the wake of the departure of her trouble-stricken predecessor Didier Bellens.

But Leroy, who acted as the company’s VP of consumer business before being promoted to CEO earlier this year, stressed that the move was not a case of new brooms sweeping clean. “I’ve been busy on this project for some time,” she said. “Of course things go a little faster when you yourself are in charge.”

photo courtesy Belgacom Group