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Orange SA abandoned its attempt to buy the phone business of Bouygues SA after failing to overcome disagreements during months of talks for a deal to create a French wireless giant.

"After in-depth discussions, the board of directors of Orange has concluded that an agreement regarding a possible consolidation with Bouygues Telecom has not been reached," the French carrier said Friday in a statement.

The sides had imposed a deadline by the end of the weekend, but the talks broke down well before then.

Negotiators toiled to craft a deal that would have involved at least four companies and the French government. In the end, the obstacles were too much to overcome.

An accord would have cut the number of major French wireless carriers to three, eliminating one combatant in one off Europe's most competitive markets.

It would potentially have made competition less fierce and allowed Orange to save on costs such as equipment purchases and customer service.

Orange was negotiating with competitors Iliad SA and Numericable-SFR SAS and the French state over the sale of assets to fend off antitrust concerns.

A deal would have valued Bouygues' carrier at as much as $11 billion. Disagreements surfaced over issues such as valuation, breakup fees and who would buy or take over assets such as Bouygues' mobile frequencies and network, stores and personnel, people familiar with the matter said over the past weeks.

The failure leaves the number of major mobile-phone companies in France at four. Domestic carriers have been combining in the aftermath of massive price drops caused by Iliad SA's 2012 entry into the mobile market with discounted offers.

While the companies have argued they can't sustain investment unless competition eases, regulators have applauded cheaper phone packages as benefiting consumers.

Orange said Jan. 5 it was in talks to buy the Bouygues business. The government holds about 23 percent of Orange, the former state phone monopoly.

France's holding includes a direct stake of about 13 percent and about 10 percent owned through Bpifrance, the public investment bank.

With big personalities and many parties involved, often teetered on failure. Orange had said it was aiming for a decision by the end of March. Bouygues said Feb. 24 the talks need to be completed by the end of the first quarter to limit disruption to clients, employees and the market.