(Telecompaper) French operator Free Mobile has about 5 million subscribers in mid-January, compared to 4.4 million at the end of September, group chairman Xavier Niel confirmed to Le Figaro following press reports quoting this figure. Niel said that just under a quarter of Free Mobile customers pay nothing, as they are quad play subscribers who opted for the 2 hour plan, now with unlimited SMS. Niel claimed that Free Mobile nows cover half of the population, up from the 37 percent observed by regulator Arcep in July.