Deustche Telekom AG's (DT) U.K. T-Mobile unit Thursday said it has appointed Richard Moat, the former boss of France Telecom SA's (FTE) Orange Romania operations, as its new managing director.

The appointment comes on the day Deutsche Telekom was forced to write down the value of its T-Mobile U.K. operations by EUR1.8 billion, given rising costs and falling revenue.

Deutsche Telekom said in April the cost to attract new subscribers has increased at the U.K. unit, but revenue hasn't risen commensurately. In addition, T-Mobile's roaming revenue has fallen as fewer people travel.

T-Mobile U.K. has been without a managing director since Jim Hyde left in March to return to his native U.S. Moat will join in June.

Last month, the group appointed a new U.K. chief marketing officer, Srini Gopalan to help the struggling business.

Amid fierce competition, T-Mobile's U.K. business has been losing market share to its rivals including Orange, Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) and Telefonica SA's (TEF) O2, while the group's falling revenue has been compounded by high fixed costs.

Deustche Telekom has said it's reviewing all options for the unit and recent press reports have suggested the company may look to sell its U.K. operations.

Company Web site: www.telekom.com

-By Kathy Sandler, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-207-842-9293; kathy.sandler@dowjones.com