If there is any sector which is brimming with competition right now, it is the broadband sector in India. After a stint of very competitive prepaid and postpaid offerings, most of the telecom operators and broadband service providers are preparing for the launch of Reliance Jio GigaFiber and fierce competition with it. When it comes to the war between the telecom operators, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio have got their horns locked in a tight battle. The Sunil Bharti Mittal led telco’s efforts to increase its ARPU have gone right, and the estimates suggest that the telco will report higher ARPU than Reliance Jio in its upcoming quarterly report. Also, the prepaid and postpaid plans of Airtel have almost matched Reliance Jio in attractiveness. Now, the next question is whether or not the broadband arm of Bharti Airtel – Airtel V-Fiber will be able to match heads with Reliance Jio GigaFiber.
Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio GigaFiber Plans Under Rs 1,000
While looking at the broadband plans being offered by Bharti Airtel, we can find that the telecom operator is currently shipping 4 plans to the subscribers. The initial starting plan of Bharti Airtel is Rs 799 per month, which offers 100GB data per month at 50 Mbps speed along with unlimited local and STD calls. This plan also provides 200GB bonus data valid for 6 months and no data rollover.
Comparing this with the Triple Play Plan of Reliance Jio GigaFiber which will likely be launched for Rs 600 per month and has been rumoured to be priced the same. The plan will bundle 100GB data per month at 50 Mbps speed along with DTH and landline connection. In the lower pricing rungs, it can be said that Reliance Jio has the head-start as the telco ships more data to the subscribers at the same speed. What’s more, is that the subscribers get to enjoy DTH services in the bundle. Also, the subscribers will enjoy 1000GB bonus data on this plan
Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio GigaFiber Plans Above Rs 1,000
Moving forward, we have the Rs 1,099 broadband plan from Airtel which will compete with the higher priced plan of Reliance Jio probably shipping 100 Mbps data. The Rs 1,099 broadband plan from Airtel offers 300GB data per month at 100 Mbps speed along with 500GB bonus data valid for 6 months. The plan also bundles unlimited local, STD and roaming calls. Additionally, this plan offers data rollover facility and Airtel Thanks benefits as well meaning that subscribers get free Amazon Prime subscription.
This plan is likely to compete with Reliance Jio’s higher priced plan around Rs 1,000, which will ship 100 Mbps data to the subscribers with 100GB data per month and 1000GB bonus data. The Reliance Jio plan will ship 300GB more data as compared to the Airtel plan, and it will have the edge of providing DTH services as well. However, the Airtel plan will come with data rollover and Airtel Thanks benefits to make up for that. So, in a way, it can be said that in the broadband segment as well Airtel will be able to match Reliance Jio GigaFiber’s offerings around the higher price tags.
It is also worth noting that Airtel has other broadband plans like the Rs 1,599 and Rs 1,999 plans which offer 600GB at 300 Mbps and unlimited data at 100 Mbps respectively. The Rs 1,599 plan provides 1000GB bonus data, and Airtel Thanks benefit whereas the Rs 1,999 plan does not offer these benefits and unlimited data is its only charm. Airtel is also shipping a 7.5% discount on its semi-annual subscription of broadband plans and a 15% discount on the annual subscription of broadband plans.
