To Counter Jio, Airtel Offers Double Data Benefit In New Broadband Plan
Airtel's broadband internet plans in Delhi starts from Rs 899 The 899 plan will now offer 60 GB data Rs 1,099 plan will now offer 90 GB of high speed data
Amid buzz about Jio's broadband services in India's telecom sector, Bharti Airtel is offering up to 100 per cent additional high speed data benefits in its newly-announced broadband plans. Bharti Airtel whose broadband internet plans in the national capital start from Rs 899 a month, will is now offering more GBs of high speed data in the same monthly rental plans. India's largest telecom company said its new plans were aimed at driving the country's digital transformation. The announcement by Bharti Airtel comes after rollout of its 'V-Fiber' broadband "to serve the exploding demand for reliable high speed data solutions in Indian homes", the telecom company said.
Bharti Airtel's Rs 899 plan in Delhi, which offered 30 GB of high speed data earlier, now offers 60 GB data. Its Rs 1,099 plan will now offer 90 GB of high speed data compared to 50 GB earlier, it said. Also, its Rs 1,299 plan now offers 125 GB compared to 75 GB earlier while the Rs 1,499 plan offers 160 GB instead of 100 GB, the statement noted. "Similar large increments in data benefits have been effected at every price point in every city with unlimited calling to any network available across all plans," Bharti Airtel added.
"Our new plans are aimed at putting India onto the digital superhighway and complement our superfast broadband offerings like 'V-Fiber'. At Airtel, our mission is to enable a superior digital experience and offer great value to our customers...We believe these new plans will also drive the adoption of high speed broadband in the country," Bharti Airtel (India) CEO-homes Hemanth Kumar Guruswamy said.
Existing customers will be upgraded to new benefits automatically within current bill cycle while new customers can choose from a host of plans that offer great value backed by best-in-class high speed broadband experience, Bharti Airtel said in its press release.
"Customers can check their data balance on 'My Airtel' app," it said.
Existing operators in the country's telecom industry are witnessing heightened competition due to aggressive voice call and data pricing by new entrant Reliance Jio, say some analysts. Jio's upcoming broadband services - called "JioFiber" - are being launched in some parts of cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Vadodara. Jio is testing a "JioFiber Preview Offer" in "select areas of Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Ahmedabad, Jamnagar, Surat and Vadodara", Jio Care, the official customer support of the telecom arm of conglomerate Reliance Industries, had said on microblogging site Twitter earlier this month.
Also Read: 'Preview offer' of Jio broadband (JioFiber) in these cities
In response to a query posted by an individual on Twitter, Jio's customer care team also said the company's network was in the process of being rolled out to other cities.
Airtel's 'V-Fiber' delivers consistently superfast broadband speeds of up to 100 Mbps to homes. "The 'V-Fiber' high speed broadband experience is available to customers within the same plan rentals and requires only a quick modem switch," it noted.
Bharti Airtel, headquartered in New Delhi, has operations in 17 countries across Asia and Africa. It had over 372 million customers across its operations at the end of March 2017.