Vodafone Idea is Missing Out on this Huge Opportunity

Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL), the third-largest telecom operator in India, is still missing out on a huge opportunity which other telcos have already tapped into. If you have not yet guessed it yet, it is FWA (fixed wireless access) service. To be more precise, it is 5G FWA. Jio and Airtel have already tapped into this, and have millions of users. Jio, in fact, has more than 10 million customers in this category when FWA and UBR (unlicensed band radio) service is combined. Airtel is also growing fast in the segment, and will soon touch 4 million customers.

• Make Telecom Talk My Trusted Source
• 
• 

However, Vodafone Idea has zero 5G FWA customers. What’s strange is that the telco doesn’t even talk much about releasing this service for the customers. 5G coverage is still being built by Vodafone Idea, and much recently, the telco launched it in the Goa circle. However, there has been no update on the launch of 5G FWA.

Customers who can’t get fiber access in their home or office are going for FWA connections. This is a great way for them to get high-speed broadband connection in their desired locations. What’s more interesting is that Vodafone Idea has already showcased the 5G FWA solution multiple times at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2026.

However, we don’t have any timeline for the launch of this service in India. What would be bad for Vi in this segment is if the telco comes in too late and the customers have already opted for 5G FWA service from other operators, who are now into 5G SA (standalone architecture). The FWA service is essentially better with 5G SA than with the 5G NSA.

Vodafone Idea hasn’t been able to deploy 5G NSA in most parts of India yet, so the question about 5G SA just goes out of the picture. Vodafone Idea has recently started adding mobile customes. So this would be a good time for the telco to also think about expanding the high-paying customer base with the launch of 5G FWA service. The telco doesn’t even compete well in the fiber broadband space with Jio and Airtel. Thus, it will be worth the wait to see what unfolds here for Vodafone Idea’s customers and the investors. Much recently the telco also got relief by the government as the telecom department cut down the AGR (adjusted gross revenue) payable after 10 years by more than Rs 20,000 crore.

Stay tuned to TelecomTalk for getting updates around 5G SA deployment from Vodafone Idea along with potential deployment of FWA service.