It has been more than 45 days since the announcement of JioFiber plans and we did not see any major changes in the broadband segment. Jio disrupted the telecom market back in 2016 with its affordable offerings, however, that is not the case in the broadband sector. Reliance JioFiber broadband plans received a lukewarm response from the users because of the FUP limit put on place for every broadband plan. That said, JioFiber commercial launch is now over and the company is providing broadband services in several new cities. While Jio is yet to reach its goal of launching JioFiber services in 1,100 cities, the company is at least taking on other service providers like BSNL, Airtel Xstream and so on. These are the key things you should before opting for JioFiber connection.
JioTV Plus Service Will Be Available for JioFiber Users
While announcing the commercial plans of JioFiber, Mukesh Ambani confirmed that the JioFiber users would get access to a special service called 'JioTV Plus.' Right now, details about this service are not known, but we're expecting it to be an OTT service platform. For example, JioFiber customers will be able to watch content from other OTT service platforms like ZEE5, Hotstart and so on under this JioTV Plus service. That being said, nothing is confirmed from the house of Reliance Jio officially, so take this news with a pinch of salt. Also, there's no update on when the company is planning to launch the JioTV Plus service to its customers.
Requirement for a Separate TV Connection
Although previously rumours were floating that Reliance Jio would bring free TV connection with its JioFiber plans that would allow the subscribers to access satellite TV channels, none of that has materialised for the subscribers who were awaiting this facility. In order to make the full use of the JioFiber ecosystem, the subscribers will eventually have to get a TV cable connection from an LCO in addition to paying Jio for the broadband services. However, there is some relief for the customers of JioFiber. Read the next point to find out.
Only Single Choice in Long Term Plans
There is a long term offer for subscribers of JioFiber who opt for an annual plan of the broadband service. However, these subscribers will get a choice between the benefits which they can enjoy as part of the JioFiber long-term offer. Either they will be able to choose from a product like a Bluetooth speaker, or in case of higher plans, an HD TV, or they can also opt for a double data option which will offer the subscribers double data limit. If not any of these options, then the subscribers can opt for two months of extra service as the long-term JioFiber plan benefit.
Free Set-Top Box with Every Plan
While Reliance Jio won’t be offering a TV connection with its broadband subscription plans, the telco is currently shipping a Jio Set-Top Box worth Rs 6,500 for free to its subscribers as part of the Welcome Offer. The subscribers will be able to use this Set-Top Box to stream both Cable TV and OTT content side by side. The Jio STB comes with a in-house application called JioTV Plus which will bring all the OTT services together.
The Reality Behind Security Deposit
It should also be noted that while the JioFiber preview subscribers were getting the option to pay a fully refundable deposit of Rs 2,500, that is not the case anymore. Any subscriber getting a JioFiber connection will have to pay Rs 2,500, and out of this only Rs 1,500 will be refundable and the rest Rs 1,000 will be considered as the installation charges. In this amount, the subscribers will get the JioFiber router, and the set-top box as well. However, the set-top box will be taken by Reliance Jio if you disconnect the JioFiber connection.
FUP Data is Only for a Month, and Not Daily
There is also a lot of confusion around the data FUP limit that Reliance Jio is providing under JioFiber. As much as we would have appreciated Reliance Jio if it provided a massive daily data limit to the subscribers, that is sadly not the case, and all the data limits listed in the plans are only for monthly plans. Which means that the plans are only going to provide monthly FUP data that in the range of 100GB, 200GB, and so on for the entry-level plans.
