Apple (AAPL) Now ‘Less Arrogant’: Report Says

France Telecom-Orange CEO Stephane Richard told reporters [via AllthingsD] Apple (AAPL) has become easier to deal with under Tim Cook.

Speaking at a Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, Richard, who runs Orange, a leading French carrier and longtime Apple partner, said Cupertino has become less arrogant and more willing to negotiate with telecoms.

“Apple has [become] more flexible, paying more attention to everyone else, probably a little less arrogant than they used to be,” said Richard.

Believing Apple under Cook to be “probably a little more under pressure” — a pressure that is worth noting, continues to grow from the likes of Samsung and other Android manufacturers gaining acceptance in the smartphone space — Richard said the idea of dealing with Apple as a much more reasonable and manageable than in the past company was “quite nice” and as a result business has been smoother.

Richard also commented on the various mobile operating systems such as Mozilla, Microsoft, BlackBerry and mobile Linux, noting that while the market is not large enough to support so many competitors, a strong third option to compete with iPhone and Android will eventually emerge.

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