Orange to provide 4G PTT at Paris Olympics 2024

The Olympics PTT service will be prioritized over other voice traffic on the 4G network to ensure reliability, said the CTIO of Events at Orange

Orange, which is an official partner and supplier of the Paris Olympics Games 2024, will use a Push-To-Talk (PTT) service over its 4G voice network for the upcoming games being held in France this summer, the telco’s CTIO of Events Bertrand Rojat told media and analysts this week.

Rojat noted that the PTT service will be prioritized over other voice traffic on the 4G network to ensure reliability and will be used by event volunteers, the Olympic committee, security services, athletes and their teams and those ensuring health and safety. Rojat did not provide details about how this priority will be ensured.

This is the first Olympics event where a PTT service has run over an operator’s existing mobile network, claimed Rojat, adding that previously, PTT services relied on things like proprietary TETRA networks.

Orange previously revealed that it is also deploying a private 5G Standalone (SA) network at the Olympics for the event’s broadcasters, athletes and staff to use. Deployed as a complement to the current commercial network, the private 5G SA network will be installed at several major venues, including the Stade de France, Arena Bercy and Paris La Défense Arena as well as along the six-kilometer stretch of the Seine for the opening ceremony and at sea at the Marina de Marseille, with the aim of boosting connectivity during these events.

The Paris Olympics Games 2024 will comprise 878 sports events. Nearly 10,500 athletes are competing and there are currently 13.5 million ticket holders.