Although Orange's App Shop has been on the radar for quite some time, but apparently it's only just been rolled out as an official announcement from the service provider has just been broadcast.

The Orange App Shop is launching in UK and France first, providing over-the-air downloads of around 5,000 applications, games, ringtones and wallpapers. The service will expand throughout 2010 to more territories, with more content being added for Orange's handset.

"We are giving customers a tailor-made shop window on the mobile that makes it easier to discover, download, use and manage content," Yves Tyrode, EVP of Orange Technocentre.

"Whether it’s a smartphone user, or someone using a simpler device, we know the demand for content is there - it’s just about getting that experience right. That is why we want to give everyone with a phone in their hand the easiest access to personal content, on the most suitable device and tariff, to help them take the parts of the mobile Internet that they know and love, everywhere they go."

The Orange App Shop is available now to download to handsets, and includes software for Java, Symbian, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and Android, and devices will soon be coming with the App Shop preloaded for single click homepage access.