After the iPhone 3G went on sale in Poland on August 22, Orange representatives said that the company paid actors to stand in line to drum up interest in the combination iPod and smartphone. Now the cell carrier is claiming that those reports were wrong, and that instead its own employees were talking to customers in line outside its Poland stores, according to Advertising Age.

Earlier, a company representative stated that actors had been paid to fill out the iPhone lines. "It was a part of our marketing strategy, the concept was thought up at Orange Poland. The aim was to 'warm up' the atmosphere around the launch of the iPhone," they said.

Now Orange representatives are claiming that the extra people in line where store employees helping potential iPhone buyers. "As part of the excitement around the launch of the iPhone, some of our team have been joining customers outside our shops," they said. "Their aim is to welcome people to the Orange shop, share in their excitement and give information about Orange tariffs."

The representative added that iPhone 3G "sales are strong and we are happy."

It's possible that Orange's original statements were misunderstood when interpreted, or that the company decided to put a different spin on its iPhone 3G launch day activities. For now, Orange is standing by its claim that it did not pad out iPhone sales lines in Poland.