ɪt wʌz bˈɔːɹn ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti sˈɪks fɹʌm ɐn ɐɡɹˈiːmənt bᵻtwˌiːn ˌɑːlɪvˈɛɾi tˌɛlᵻmˈiːdiə ænd bˈɛl ɐtlˈæntɪk, wɪððɪ ˈeɪm ʌv kəmpˈiːɾɪŋ wɪð tˈɛlᵻkˌɑːm ɪtˈæliə ɪnðə fˈɪkst təlˈɛfəni sˈɛktɚ.
It was born in 1996 from an agreement between Olivetti Telemedia and Bell Atlantic, with the aim of competing with Telecom Italia in the fixed telephony sector.